The Bitter Taste of Forbidden Fruit
by Necia89
Summary: Who knew that her once enemy would be the one to turn her life upside down? Not DH compatible. Please R&R!
1. The Story of My Life

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story.

**Chapter One – The Story of My Life **

Work, eat, feed the cat, and sleep. That is my life; at least it was up until Draco Malfoy turned my life upside down. But I'm getting ahead of myself, let's rewind. Up until that time, I was just twenty-five year old Hermione Granger, living in muggle London with a life as exciting as that of a toothpick.

When I was seventeen, I decided that the life for me would be that of an Auror, those fascinating people that lived their lives to the fullest, dealing with the Dark Arts night and day, putting good use to their knowledge of magic. But the primary reason I became an Auror was related to the death of my parents.

Voldemort, a name I no longer fear to speak, is not even as foul and retched as the "man" himself. He murdered my parents during my seventh year at Hogwarts in order to provoke Harry and myself for us to act rashly. I almost did, I could have killed him but ironically, it was Ron who reasoned with me and helped me to analyze the situation clearly before doing anything moronic.

Seventeen, I was seventeen when I realized that from then on I was to take care of myself in this world, no longer depending on the care, warmth, and support of my parents. Why should anyone have to deal with that at such a young and tender age? I figured that if I could help in fighting the Dark Arts, I was helping to prevent my experiences to be repeated elsewhere.

And so it was done. I became an Auror and fought beside Harry and the others to defeat Voldemort. His scum on the bottom of his shoe known as the Death Eaters, were gathered up and thrown away in Azkaban, although a handful managed to escape from such a sentence.

One would think that being an Auror meant that I would always be occupied with some dark, dangerous, life-threatening, and exciting mission. I did too. Ever since the Dark Lord was vanquished, there weren't many Dark Art shenanigans to deal with apart from searching for the escaped Death Eaters, which has been brutally unsuccessful.

With time, my so-called "exciting" life faded with each new day. I often wished I could be a teenager again, attending Hogwarts where something life-threatening happened every year. But no, I accepted the fact that my life was going nowhere.

Harry, Ginny, and Ron all tried to comfort me, telling me that there was so much to live for, so much to look forward to. It was all a waste of breath was all I could say. I became this barely living walking piece of misery, like a gloomy rain cloud that lingers over your head on a bad day. The only difference was that I was that rain cloud every day. I needed excitement. I needed a change.

Ginny, the dear that she is understood my thirst for excitement and often took me out to pubs and clubs. She figured that this excitement that I needed could be found in some hot, young, guy at a pub, and that I lacked someone to love and love me back.

Maybe this was the case, but some of the men you find in such places were only looking for some hot piece of ass to screw for one night and then go back to the pub and find another hot piece of ass. It was a bloody routine for them. If all I wanted was mediocre sex I could have just put on a leather mini skirt and knee boots and stood out on the street, waiting at a corner for some horny old geezer. I finally gave up on going to such places when a drunken imbecile approached me one night and said, "Hey baby, how about me and me head over to the men's piddly-diddly department where I can stuff my beef into your taco?" There were so many things wrong with that I don't know where to even begin. Let's just say he won't be assisting in any repopulation of the world any time soon.

Eventually, Ron finally had the nerves to pull his pants and ask me out. I wanted to ask him at first, since he seemed as if he would piss his pants just thinking about what he would say to me, but Ginny convinced to wait. So I did.

It was exciting at first, Ron can be quite the romantic when he wanted to be, but he honestly was much better as a pal than a boyfriend. Lately, he would rather sit and watch Quidditch on the television, occasionally asking me to pass the crisps. Fantastic. As for the activity in the bedroom, let me know when there is activity.

Ron would do his thing, shudder after a couple of minutes and fall asleep. I literally filed my nails the other day when he climbed on top of me. I've tried suggesting trying new things, but alas, I'd like to see the day where Ronald Weasley would listen to me.

In reality, I didn't even know what I wanted anymore. I just wanted to escape, to be in another place, see new faces, meet new people, and experience new feelings. One must be careful what they wish for.

And so that brings us to present day. I've become the person that I had lost years ago thanks to no other than Draco Malfoy. This is the story of my life and how the forbidden fruit tempted me into living once again.

**A/N: **I'm back and with a new story! It's taken forever to come up with this story but I think I finally have it. Unfortunately, I won't be able to update as often as I would want to with school creeping around the corner (ugh). But no updating at all would be even worse right? Anyways, please leave a review and tell me what you think! You know how much I love reviews! Love you all! mwah


	2. Help From a Stranger

**Disclaimer: **Nothing is mine, just the story. I do not own Harry Potter (but I wouldn't mind owning Dan for a bit mmm). Don't sue my poor little arse!

**Chapter Two – Help From a Stranger**

"Hermione," the sweet voice said. I turned to face him, to have my breath taken away by his beautiful features, or to gasp once he spoke again. I saw him standing there. An archangel would be put to shame if he stood beside _him._

I smiled at him and I could feel the blood rushing to my face as he flashed his magnificent smile back at me. I sighed deeply, feeling foolish since I couldn't even see his face clearly. Everything was so bright, as if all the light radiated off his body. The scene changed. He was fading away into darkness. I stretched out my hand as if to snatch him back.

"Don't leave me," I called out. "Stay with me!" But my attempt was hopeless. Darkness swallowed him whole, leaving me cold and alone. The scene changed again, this time leaving me in an all too familiar place. A cold, darkened place, where I laid sprawled on the hard floor, helpless and alone. The scene frightened me. I didn't want to be in the dark, I wanted to be in the light with my angel. Why did he leave me? I shot open my eyes, waking with a start and a small gasp.

A dream, a vaguely familiar dream and it was the second time I had it in over a year. But I still felt the same way I felt the first time I had it; a feeling of unease and fear. Fantastic. I am now afraid of the dark. I shook the feeling of unease away as I lay comfortably in my bed. Ha, I wish.

I once again found myself curled up along the edge of the bed. If I turned to the right, I would end up on the floor since my beloved Ronald had decided to once again spread his legs and arms out as if he was Da Vinci's model for _The Vitruvian Man_, thus taking up the entire queen-sized bed. I pushed his arm away, causing him to snort and roll over on top of me, smacking me in the face as he drooled on my pillow. His entire weight was now on top of me, pushing the air out of my lungs. At least one of us was comfortable. He began to snore. Great, I've become a personal body pillow.

I managed to see the time before Ron's hand came crashing onto my face. I had a couple of hours before I had to be at work. I struggled underneath his weight, trying to push him off me and escape into my much needed freedom. He stirred and I could feel his arousal pulsing against my thigh. Crap. Freedom! Need freedom now!

"Good morning 'Mione," he muffled into my hair. "You're such a naughty girl, I'm barely awake and you're asking for some hot, sleepy, morning sex? I love you Hermione." Ah yes, those three little words. I've been in a relationship with Ron for over two years now and I _still_ can't find the heart to say it back to him. It bothered him at first because I used to say it not that long ago, but then everything started going downhill in the last few months.

He wasn't as affectionate as he used to be and prefers to stay in the majority of the time, watching the bloody Chaser get hit with the bloody bludger. If only I could get my hands on one of those bludgers, I sure I could knock some sense into my dear Ron.

As for in the bedroom, well there isn't much to say in relation to that. I'd lie on my back and he did his thing. I watched the ceiling and think about something I had read. It took a matter of five minutes. No foreplay, no positions, nothing. I tried suggesting to him to try something new, but he says our sex is incredible the way it is, why change it? Right...

"I'd very much appreciate if you could get yourself off me _Ronald_ because in case you haven't noticed, I'm having the most difficult time _breathing_," I said between forced words. Ron looked confused at first, either because he didn't understand or because he was just being as thick as usual. I rolled my eyes and pushed up against his shoulders, which honestly were not that bad.

I must admit, he did have a fairly nice body. He shaved his chest hair because he was under the impression that I preferred hairless chests. But now he has a red rash from the irritated skin. It's the thought that counts right? Other than that, he wasn't flabby and he had some muscular build. Nothing like the angel in my dream, but with his shining and blinding glory, it's sort of hard to tell.

Ron finally understood that I was being crushed underneath his weight and hoisted himself off his elbows. I scrambled out bed, breathing in the beautiful air. Ron looked back "seductively" from his erected penis to me again, raising an eyebrow at me and giving his "sexy" look. Honestly, he was creepier looking that sexy.

"Not today Ron, I have to get ready for work," I had to give him some credit. He knew that this relationship was heading straight for the dump and he was trying everything he could to make it work.

"Nonsense," he replied. "It's Saturday, you said something about going dress hunting with Ginny." I had almost forgotten. Harry and Ginny's wedding was about six months away Ginny had insisted on going to find the perfect dress before the wedding date got any closer.

"Right, well either way, I'm going to make some breakfast," I said slipping on my robe. I paused at the door of our attached lavatory to look back at Ron. "Anything in particular you want?"

"Well, if it's a breakfast in bed deal, I would very much like to have you on the menu." I sighed; it was going to be a long day.

¨¨¨¨¨¨

Ugh, I am only glad that it is Ginny who is getting married and not me. Shopping for a wedding dress should be fun, but sadly with my pal Ginny, it's quite hectic.

We spent a good couple of hours in one bridal shop where she was trying to decide between two dresses. The only real difference I could see was that one was a tube top and the other had spaghetti straps. In the end, we ended up leaving the store empty handed and went to a coffee shop around the corner.

We spent more time at the coffee shop than the bridal shop. By the time we finished laughing about the time she got stuck between my bed and the crack between my wall, it was late in the evening and getting quite dark. I hugged Ginny goodbye and started making my way to the next apparation point to head home.

I walked past a couple of men standing underneath a lamp post and a homeless man, sitting on the ground, holding his head in his hands. It was really quite depressing. He was completely filthy and had a hat lying between his legs with a couple of pounds, surely not enough to buy his next meal or whatever he used the money for. His clothes were all torn and just as filthy and his hair was the colour of mud. Who knows when was the last time he showered. I didn't want to imagine what this man had gone through. I didn't want to ever imagine seeing myself in that state. I rummaged through my purse and found a small amount of muggle money and kneeled down to place it in his hat. It wasn't much, but it should have been enough to afford something to eat.

"Thank you," he mumbled as I walked away. The voice was oddly familiar. My apparation point was at least two blocks away. As I walked along, I had the strangest feeling I was being watched, and followed. I quickened my pace, and quickly through a glance behind my back.

The two men who had been standing underneath the lamp post were walking behind me, one keeping his eyes on me while the other observed the surroundings. The one watching me had a malicious grin spread across his face. I slightly panicked. The street was deserted.

I quickened my pace once again, eventually breaking into a run. I heard the footsteps behind me break into a run also. My heart was beating faster every second as I got closer and closer to my apparation point. I wasn't far; it was just around the upcoming corner. I came up the corner and my heart gave a small jolt. One of the men that were supposed to be behind me was now standing in front of me, licking his lips as he looked me up and down, as if I was some delicious steak he was about to devour.

The other man behind me grabbed my arms and placed a hand over my mouth, muffling my scream. He pulled me into a dark alley as the other man made sure no one was around. I was brutally pushed up against the alley wall, causing stars to appear before my eyes as my head made contact with the hard brick.

"Well, well, well," one of the men said as he slowly approached me. "Now what would a fine dame like yourself, be doing walking around dark corners all by herself?" I spat in his face as he tilted my chin upwards. He wiped the spit with the back of his hand and slapped me hard across the face. I whimpered at the contact. I tasted blood. "You'll pay for that you little bitch."

He signalled for the other man to come forward, pinning my arms up against the wall. The first man stroked the side of my breast slowly before grasping it harshly. I was shaking, I was sure I was going to piss my pants. Maybe if I did piss my pants, the smell of urine would disgust them and they would leave.

What was I doing? I could defend myself. I kicked him on the shin and he cursed aloud before slapping me across the face once more. He tore open my blouse and I screamed as he harshly grasped my breast once again, and hiked my leg over his hip. I tried to kick him again, but it was no use. I screamed but he slapped me harder each time. I was done for.

His hand was making its way up my thigh and the tears were flowing down my face when a sickening crunch filled the air, as if rock had made contact with bone. That's exactly what it was. The homeless man from before had appeared out of nowhere. He had hit the asshole with his hand up my skirt on his head with a rock. The pervert lay unconscious on the alley floor.

The other man restraining my arms finally let go and had drawn out a knife. The homeless man was alert. I couldn't really see what was happening, but I heard one of the two men groan in pain. I picked up the rock that my saviour had used and smashed it on the second pervert's head, causing a sickening crunch and thud to echo off the walls. As the two men lay unconscious on the floor, I approached the homeless man clutching my ruined blouse closed and wiping away tears and blood.

"How can I ever thank you?" I said chokingly, gasping for air.

"How about getting a band-aid?" he answered as he staggered forward, clutching his side. He fell into my arms as the stench of blood and sweat burned my nose. With all the strength I had, I dragged him along outside the alley and to the apparation point.

**A/N: **Well there you have it! I'm quite amazed that the first chapter had 102 hits (and still counting) in just one day of having been posted! I hope everyone is enjoying this so far. Please don't forget to review! Good or bad, it's all welcome! A huge thank you to my first couple reviewers, you guys get a cookie! Love you all mwah


	3. Sexy Hobo

**Disclaimer: **I do not own anything but the story.

**Chapter Three – Sexy Hobo**

I somehow managed to sit the homeless man on my couch without breaking my back. Ron wasn't home when we got there. He had left a note saying he was called in by Harry. They were to track down a suspected Death Eater and could possibly be gone the whole weekend.

The man groaned in pain again as he clutched his side once more. Now that I had some light to see, he had been stabbed during the brawl with the perverts in the alleyway. I felt terrible; he was in this state to save me.

He had his eyes tightly shut in pain and was biting his lip. His filthy hands were glistening with his blood while he put pressure on his wound. I approached him and lightly touched his arm.

"Let me see how big of band-aid I'll need to get," I said so quietly that I could barely even hear myself. He winced slightly as I lifted his hands off his side to reveal his wound. I examined it carefully. He also had several cuts on both his arms. I had some skills in healing spells and these wounds wouldn't be too difficult, he would be fine within the week. I carefully put his hands back down on his wound and told him to continue putting pressure on it.

I made my way to the next room to summon a first aid kit and to grab some clean cloths and water. I made a mental note to explain to the ministry that I had cast a healing spell on this man because he saved my life. I would modify his memory anyways. They wouldn't argue with Hermione Granger, not a chance in hell.

I returned to the living room and pulled up a stool by the couch.

"Would you mind taking off your shirt and lay down?" I asked as I wet a cloth.

"Sure," the man replied as he took off his filthy shirt and placed it between his legs. I couldn't help but stare.

For a homeless man, he was ridiculously fit. Maybe he was eating better than I thought. He had muscular _everything_. He had broad shoulders, big muscular arms; the type of arms that would make you feel warm and safe. He had an _amazing _six pack and chest with bleach blond hair trailing by his trousers. I was literally drooling it was so embarrassing. I had to wonder why he had bleach blonde hair on his chest and had dark hair on his head.

"Are you going to need a bucket?" he chuckled. I shook my head in order to clear my mind. My hand was shaking slightly as I cleaned his wound on his side. I placed my other hand against his stomach and oh Merlin's beard. The contact of his skin with mine sent electric shocks throughout my entire body making the hairs on my arms stand on end.

Ew, what the hell was I thinking? No offence, but he was a lot dirtier than I liked. I dabbed his wound with peroxide and I was shaking more than ever. He placed one of his hands on top of mine.

"Are you going to need help?" I looked up at him and forgot how to breathe for a second. He had the most _amazing _eyes and they pierced mine with such intensity that I was getting a bit dizzy. He had silver eyes; almost as if they were pale blue diamond's piercing my chocolate ones. They frightened me almost; they were too familiar for my liking. He smiled a crooked smile at my dumbfounded reaction. _Beautiful._ Now he was just killing me. Merlin, I'd never thought I would see the day where I was losing my head over a hobo. Maybe I should start picking up crazy cat ladies too. Maybe she would turn out to be the next supermodel.

"No, it's ok, thanks," I managed to say once I remembered I could speak. I took out my wand and pointed it at his side wound, muttering the healing spell under my breath. The wound stitched itself and I covered it with a band-aid. I didn't want to look up at his reaction on what I had just done so I moved on to the right arm.

"I'm Hermione Granger by the way," I said timidly as I repeated the healing process. He didn't answer. Perhaps he was too much in shock? "I don't know how I could ever thank you for saving me back there. I owe you my life."

Silence.

I moved lastly to his left arm. I turned it over and froze. The Dark Mark was tattooed on his forearm, ugly and faded it stared back at me. I stood up quickly pointing my wand directly at his chest.

"Don't try anything funny," I said. I couldn't believe out of all the people in the world, I owed a Death Eater my life.

"I won't if you won't," he answered back casually. He was much too relaxed. "You honestly don't recognize me, do you _Granger._"

It hit me then. The way he said my name, it was a rush of memories that came soaring back at me.

"_Malfoy_?" I said in more in shock than in question. I couldn't believe it. The Slytherin Prince now turned hobo. I lowered my wand. During the final war with Voldemort, Malfoy turned to our side. He claimed that he saw the danger his father had placed his entire family in, so much to risk the life of his only son and he couldn't take it anymore. He was afraid of Voldemort and wanted to fight against him.

As soon as Lucius heard of this betrayal, he disowned Draco as his son. Malfoy's mother, Narcissa was distort with anxiety knowing that her only son was not welcome in his own home for as long as Lucius lived. Lucius was captured and thrown into Azkaban while Narcissa slithered away at the Malfoy Manor.

After the Dark Lord was defeated, Draco vanished. There were many speculations that he had returned to the manor to care for his mother but there hadn't been any news of him for years. What was he doing on the streets?

"Yes Granger, it's me," he answered dryly as he rolled his eyes. "Thanks for healing me but I think I should be on my way." He made to stand up but groaned in pain and sat back down.

"Unfortunately," I started; still trying to understand what was Malfoy doing living as hobo. "You won't be completely healed until next week." The idea of having Malfoy stay in my house was beyond belief. But I couldn't just kick him out to the streets again, not after what he had done for me. Malfoy or not, he still saved my life.

"Grand. So what? I'm supposed to stay here with you?"

"I don't like the idea either, _Malfoy_"

"I don't see why not," he smirked. Even after all these years, he still had that signature smirk I so wanted to smack off his ridiculous face. "You were drooling all over me just minutes ago."

"Shut it Malfoy. I was only helping you because you helped me."

"Perhaps I should help you in getting some new clothes too." He looked down at my chest. I had almost forgotten that my blouse was ripped and my nungas were bouncing around freely. As least I still had my bra on. Come to think of it, I probably looked almost as bad as he did. Perfect. Slytherin Prince gone hobo and Gryffindor Princess gone crazy cat lady. We'd make the perfect couple. Wait, what? I mentally smacked myself.

I summoned a pillow and blanket from upstairs and laid them down beside him.

"I'm going to take a shower and go to bed. You can help yourself to whatever is in the kitchen." I stormed out of the living room just as I heard him call after me.

"Would you mind sharing the shower with me?"

Ugh.



The next morning, I awoke to the sound of the shower from my lavatory. Ron must have come home after all. I figured I owed Ron some credit for all the effort he was putting in to make our relationship work. Perhaps I would surprise him in the shower by making it steamier than it already was. Would he be up for trying that? Only one way to find out.

I stripped down to my nuddy-pants and headed over to the steamy shower. I stood seductively in front of the semi-transparent shower curtain and quietly drew it back. He had his back towards me and didn't notice when I stepped in behind him. I snaked my hands around his waist and took hold of his member. He gasped but I shushed him.

"Let's try something new Ron," I said sexually as I placed small kisses on his neck.

"I would love to, but please, call me Draco."

Oh holy fuck.

I screamed and tripped backwards, falling out of the shower and onto the floor, bringing the shower curtain with me.

Draco roared with laughter as I tried to catch my breath.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I yelled at him, wrapping the shower curtain securely around my naked body.

"Taking a shower obviously, what else?" he answered as he wiped away tears of laughter. He was enjoying himself too much. "When do you think was the last time I took a shower Granger? I hate feeling this filthy, it's so degrading for a Malfoy."

I opened my mouth to yell at him again when I heard the front door open.

"Hermione! I'm home! Turns out it was a false alarm," Ron yelled from the bottom of the stairs. My heart sank. I didn't even want to imagine what he would do if he saw my current state. "I brought Harry and Ginny over for breakfast!" Fantastic.

**A/N: **Woohoo! Malfoy makes an appearance! Anyways, I'm hoping everyone is enjoying the story so far, there's a few surprises in later chapters, I can't wait to post them! But in the meantime, I'm just hoping to update again soon. Please review! 'Tis very important to me when my readers leave a review! Love you all kiss kiss.


	4. New Roommate

**Disclaimer: **YOU KNOW WHAT? I DO OWN EVERYTHING! SO HA! TAKE THAT! MUWHAHA (I actually don't, just the story. Don't sue me!)

**Chapter Four – New Roommate**

I was panicking. Oh Merlin, panic, panic, panic. What should I do?

Breathe.

Yeah, that's a good start. I'll breathe. Ok, deep breath in. And out.

Nope, still panicking.

I stood up and stumbled over the shower curtain as I made my way to the door. I turned back to Malfoy. He was completely calm! The prat had wrapped a towel around his waist and was checking himself out in the mirror. Unbelievable. Not much to check out really apart from his body. His hair was now its usual bleach blonde colour but he was still shaggy looking and unshaven. He reminded me of a fit albino Santa Clause.

"Don't make any noise and stay in here until I come for you alright?" I said, pausing at the doorway. He waved his hand in the air in a careless manner as if he was dismissing me.

"Sure, sure," he answered not even looking at me. "Would you mind if I gave myself a trim and a shave?"

"Whatever, just be quiet alright?" I answered as I rolled my eyes. He nodded and I shut the door. I rammed my legs into a pair of jeans and forcefully pulled on a t-shirt just as I heard Ron call for me again from downstairs.

"Hermione? Are you awake? Are you ok? Should I come up there?" Merlin, did he have to ask so many questions?

"No, I'm ok, just have to make myself decent looking!" I yelled as I cast a straightening spell on my hair. The long, smooth tresses bounced off my shoulders as I hastily sprayed on some perfume and practically flew down the stairs. The three of them were sitting in the living area, chatting away while public enemy number one was upstairs naked in my bathroom. Even if Malfoy had turned against Voldemort in the final war, I knew that Ron still had bitter feelings towards him. He said that he distrusted Malfoy. I didn't want to even imagine what would happen if Ron found out Malfoy was upstairs. It was bound to happen at any moment and I knew it wasn't going to be pleasant.

"Hey guys!"I said a tad bit more enthusiastically than I had intended. Ginny came towards me and embraced me in a warm hug, with Harry following behind her. He had really nice cologne on; no doubt Ginny bought it for him.

"'Morning love," Ron approached me and embraced me in a deep and passionate kiss, not to mention sloppy. It was like kissing a whelk. My shirts usually tended to have wet collars after a snog fest due to Ron's drooling. But hey, at least he tried right?

"Hi," I said as I slightly pushed him away. "I'm guessing you guys must be starving, anything in particular you guys would like to eat for breakfast?"

"I think the usual should be fine love," Ron answered.

"What's the usual?" Harry asked, sitting down with Ron for a game of wizard's chess.

"Bacon, eggs, toast, sausage, hashbrowns, juice, coffee, all that good stuff," Ron answered and he set up the game.

"I'll help," Ginny piped up, walking with me towards the kitchen.

I didn't talk much whilst we worked in the kitchen. Ginny did most of the talking, mostly about wedding plans. Either way, I was more worried that Ron would want to go up to the bathroom and find Malfoy in his semi-naked glory. I had to admit, it was a nice sight; all that muscle. I didn't get a glimpse of his package though, I-

What in bloody hell am I talking about? And I'm starting to talk to myself now. Fantastic, I have a double personality.

Yeah, a personality that drools over Slytherin prince turned hobo.

A sexy one though.

Shut up brain, shut up, shut up, shut up.

We continued to work and we could hear Ron's triumphant laughter as he beat Harry at chess yet again. As we set the food on the table, Ginny was _still_ talking about wedding plans. She would ask my opinion for something, a colour or a type of flower but wouldn't give me enough time to answer since she would ask a million other questions before I said anything. I guess asking so many questions ran in the family. I kept glancing up towards the top floor and stopping every now and then to listen for any noise from the bedroom.

I didn't say much while we eat, straining to listen for any noise or movement from our naked guest. After we finished, I started to clean up and take the dishes to the kitchen. Harry helped me to take the dishes to the sink, where they would clean themselves with a bit of magic.

"Is something wrong 'Mione?" he asked as he placed some dishes in the sink. I shook my head but then Ron's yelling came from the other room.

"WHAT IN BLOODY FUCKING HELL ARE YOU DOING IN MY HOUSE?"

Shit.

Harry and I looked at each other before running out to the bomb that was on the brink of exploding. Ron had his wand pointed directly at Malfoy's bare chest. Malfoy stood with his hands in the air, perfectly calm and Ginny stood in the middle looking back and forth between the two men.

"Ron," I started, walking slowly towards him with my hands up in defence. "Ron, let me explain."

"What is there to explain Hermione?" Ron said between gritted teeth. He was literally turning purple. "Although I would very much like to know for how long you've been fucking _him_." He cocked his head towards Malfoy as he put emphasize on "him". I was taken back; Ron had never insulted me like that.

"Don't jump to conclusions Ron," Malfoy said. It surprised me, and I was sure everyone else in the room, that he called Ron, well, Ron. I looked over at him and I felt myself blush slightly. He cleaned up quite nicely. He had left his hair long enough to slightly cover his eyes and left it untidy, as if he had just got out of bed. Now that he had shaven, his facial features were practically flawless. He had grown into himself and filled up quite nicely. He had high cheekbones, a strong jaw, and rosy lips. There were signs of dimples when he smiled, if he ever did. He still had the towel wrapped around his waist so his gorgeous torso was still visible. He had removed the bandages I had put on for him. His wound's were nothing but scars now. Either way, my mind stopped working for a few seconds at the sight of him.

Malfoy looked over at me and I nearly fainted. His eyes were ten times more striking now that the shaggy hair was out of the way. Merlin Hermione, get a grip. I noticed that Ginny was having a hard time keeping her eyes off Malfoy as well.

"Is this true Hermione?" Harry asked.

"What?" I was confused for a minute then realized that Malfoy must have told Ron and the others about the previous night's events while I was drooling over the sex god in front of me.

"That he saved you from some thugs," Harry spoke again.

"Of course," I shook my head to clear it from the daze I found myself in. "I had just said goodbye to Ginny when it happened. Malfoy turned out to be a hobo I had given some money to and he came to save me. He got hurt while fighting them off so I brought him here to cure him. I had no idea who he was." I glanced over at Malfoy before lowering my eyes and looking back at Ron.

He was standing completely still. He had lowered his wand but was glaring intensely at Malfoy. The room was utterly silent until Harry spoke again.

"Well," he started, clasping his hands together. "I believe a thanks is in order." Harry walked over to Malfoy and stretched out his hand to shake Malfoy's. A small twinge of hurt hit my chest; shouldn't it have been Ron who was giving thanks? Malfoy looked back and forth from Harry and his hand before he reluctantly stretched his own and took Harry's. I was amazed. Hell didn't break loose. Nothing could amaze me more.

Oh how wrong I was.

"I'm guessing you don't have a place to stay," Ron finally said. He put his wand away but stood in the same place.

"You guess correctly," Malfoy answered, crossing his arms across his chest. "But I live quite comfortably under the bridge. It's a five star hotel, you should visit sometime."

"Well, I suppose the least we can do in return for the favour you did for 'Mione," Ron took a deep intake of breath before continuing. "Is for you to stay here for some time until you're able to get another place." My jaw dropped open. "But I swear Malfoy, if you try any funny business-"

"I would very much appreciate your hospitality Ron," Malfoy answered as he cocked an eyebrow. "But there is nothing you need to worry about. I would also appreciate it if you called me Draco. First name basis seems more civilized, since we'll be living under the same roof for a period of time."

"Don't I get any say in this?" I crossed my arms. "This is my house too Ronald." Draco's eyes met mine. Again, I forgot how to breathe for a moment.

"If you'd rather have me leave," Draco started in a voice like silk; it sent shivers down my spine. "I wouldn't want to upset you, Hermione." Oh bloody hell. The way he said my name made my knees buckle. But I couldn't give in; Ron was standing a few feet away from me. If he saw how I accidently drooled over Malfoy, he would actually believe I was sleeping with Malfoy.

What the hell is going on with me? Merlin Hermione, stop idolizing the prat.

"No, it's not that," I remembered how to put words together in a sentence. "I don't mind if you stay Mal-Draco it's just my opinion wasn't asked before making decisions."

"Well, how else do you want to thank him 'Mione?" Ron asked as he too crossed his arms. Something told me there was more to that question than it seemed. He looked at me as if trying to figure out what was going through my mind. Good luck buddy, you're no Edward Cullen.

"I think," I looked over at Draco. "It's fine if Draco stays here for some time, I just would have liked it if you had taken my thoughts into consideration that's all."

"Well then, what are your thoughts?" Ron squinted at me.

"Doesn't matter, it's already decided isn't it?" I shrugged. Draco lowered his eyes from me and crossed his hands behind his back as he looked back at Ron.

"Well, now that everything has been cleared up, I came down to ask for some clothes." Draco said after a few minutes of silence.

"I can lend you some of Ronald's clothes," I said as I made my way to the stairs. Draco bowed his head and followed me.

"Hey, wait, I didn't say you could lend my clothes," Ron stepped forward.

"Yeah, well I didn't say you could lend my house," I snapped back as I stopped at the bottom of the stairs. Ron opened his mouth to answer back, but closed it again and headed back to the living room.

I ran up the stairs and headed into my room and took out some of Ron's clothes. Draco came in quietly, watching me as I laid the clothes on the bed.

"Does it bother you that much Granger if I stay here?" he asked. So much for being civilized.

"No _Malfoy,_ I just wish Ron would be more considerate and include me in decisions that should involve both of us. Now if you excuse me, I'm going to go get prepare your room."

"Thank you, _Hermione_." He put emphasize on my name, almost mockingly. Ugh.

"I thought you had grown up _Draco_, but you haven't changed a bit. You're still the annoying ferret I knew back when we were at Hogwarts."

"Perhaps, but now you can't help but drool over this annoying ferret can you, _Hermione_?" He smirked at me. Ugh, how positively annoying!

"You're insufferable Malfoy," I went to leave the room but he caught my arm just as I made it to the door.

"But seriously," he took my hand in both of his. My hands were so tiny and delicate compared to his manly paws. They were rough and dry, but I couldn't help to feel a tingling sensation when our skin made contact. "I want to thank you for taking me into your house. I am undoubtedly grateful." At that moment, he brought my hand to his lips and lightly placed a kiss on the back. He looked directly into my eyes as he kissed my hand, sending shivers from the tip of my fingers all the way to my toes.

I opened my mouth to speak, but no words came out. He smiled at me, revealing the dimples just below his cheeks and a set of straight pearly white teeth. It wasn't his infamous smirk, it was just a normal smile, but it made my heart melt.

Since I couldn't make words come out in a proper sentence, I simply smiled at him and left the room, closing the bedroom door behind me. I leaned up against the door and took a deep breath. This was going to get interesting.

**A/N: **For those who don't know who Edward Cullen is, he is the sextastic vampire from Stephenie Meyer's FANBLOODYTASTIC novel series, _Twilight_. He has the ability to hear people's thoughts and to steal my heart (along with everyone else's). Let's take a moment to think about sexy vampires. Mmm sigh.

Anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter! Sorry for the long update. Unfortunately I start school next week so the updates are going to take longer than usual. Sorry ppl! Thank you to all you fantastic people who left reviews, I love you all! Currently, this story has 474 hits! It makes me happy teehee. Anyways, don't forget to leave a review!


	5. Happy Endings

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story.

**Chapter Five – Happy Endings**

"Hermione! Where are my socks? I can't find them anywhere!" Ron's yelling came from the bedroom as I was making my way up the stairs with a basket full of clean laundry. As I walked down the hall, I bumped into Draco since I was staring at the ground, quite angrily actually. As if the ground had ever done something to me.

He caught me in his arms and I was so close to his face, our lips were inches from each other and I could almost taste him. All it would take for us to kiss would be the slightest movement.

Wait, what?

He smiled the perfect smile I learned to love even though I hated the prat and released me.

"Careful Hermione," oh the bastard, why did he have to say my name in such a way that made my whole body turn to butter? "You should watch more carefully where you're going." With that he walked away and headed downstairs, once again leaving me breathless. He seemed to know the affect that he occasionally had on me and he used it to his advantage, he was too proud of himself. Prat.

It had been like this for over two months now, and I couldn't understand why I could find myself so incredibly attracted to the ferret that once made my life a living hell.

Well, of course I could understand why I was attracted to him, physically at least. He was absolutely _gorgeous._

Shut up brain.

After realizing that I probably stood in the same spot Draco had left me far longer than I had expected, I shook my head and made my way to my bedroom. I found Ron in frenzy, running around the room like a loon, searching for his socks.

"What's wrong with you Ron? Harry's waiting for you downstairs," I picked out a pair of his socks and handed them to him.

"I know Hermione, I know!" he practically yelled at me. It's not my fault that the socks I gave him were the furry ones his mum made for him this past Christmas.

"What's the matter with you Ronald? It's like someone stuck a stick up your ass and left it there to rot." He glared at me.

Although I was treating myself to some delicious eye candy these past couple of months, my relationship with Ron was hitting the rocks. We fought more often and usually about little things. There was a time where we didn't speak to each other for two weeks because we got in a hefty argument about asking too many questions.

"Harry and I are to leave for a while," he mumbled under his breath as he sat on the bed to put on his socks. "We're going on a mission to locate some Death Eater's." My jaw dropped, I had no idea about this.

"Why wasn't I told of this? I'm sure Harry would have wanted me to know at least. And why aren't I going with you?" I could feel the blood rushing up to my face with anger.

"He may have mentioned it, but I must have forgotten to say something to you. Besides, Harry wanted one of us to stay behind with Malfoy, so I decided that I was going to go with Harry."

"I can't believe you Ronald! Again, you made an important decision without even letting me know until the last minute. I thought we discussed this!"

"Hey, don't raise your voice at me," he pointed a threatening finger at me. "I don't know how long we'll be gone and this could get dangerous. I'd rather you stay here with that ferret than for you to get hurt."

"Don't talk to me like that; I'm not your piece of shit that you think you can command!" Ron stood up and raised his arm in the air, as if he were to strike me. In a matter of milliseconds, my wand was out and I had it pointed underneath his chin.

"Don't even think about it Ronald," I whispered menacingly. "I don't know what's gotten into you. I never thought I would see the day where you would raise your hand at me like that." I lowered my wand as well as my head and he only snorted and went to the bathroom.

I could feel the hot tears wield up behind my eyes, but I refused to let Ron see me cry. I ran out of the bedroom and headed downstairs. As I was about to enter the kitchen, Harry had his back to me and was talking in a low voice with Draco. I couldn't make out what they were saying, but it seemed as if Harry was giving Draco instructions, and Draco simply nodded.

As if he could feel someone was watching, Draco looked away from Harry and laid his beautiful diamond eyes on me and I could swear my heart skipped a beat. He straightened his back and stepped away from Harry before bringing into account my presence in the room. He looked positively gorgeous, even if he was wearing Ron's furry burgandy sweater.

"Hermione," my knees slightly gave away. "I am assuming that you know about Harry and Ron's departure for a period of time?" Harry turned to face me, giving me warm smile and looking at me with his gentle emerald eyes. I simply nodded, fearing that I would break down and cry in reminder of the row I had just endured with Ron not too long ago if I said something.

I heard Ron come down the stairs and open the front door and called for Harry.

"Harry, I'm ready can we go now?" Harry gave me a look of concern before stepping out of the kitchen. I could hear him talking with Ron and trying to convince him to come say a proper goodbye to me.

I paced myself around the kitchen, feeling Draco's eyes piercing my body with every movement. I did not want to say anything again in fear that I would start to cry. I didn't want to cry in front of Draco. Every now and then I would look up to see if Draco was indeed watching me and he was. His stare was intense, full of curiosity, and if I wasn't mistaken, a hint of concern.

Eventually, Harry returned to the kitchen with Ron shadowing his footsteps. Harry walked over to Draco and shook his hand, telling him to take care of me. He then came over to me and embraced me in a warm, brotherly hug, reassuring me that everything was going to be alright and that they would return sooner than I thought. I only nodded once again, fearing I would start bawling.

Ron stood in front of me as Harry released me, his arms crossed and a somewhat bored expression on his face. He seemed annoyed with the fact that it was his turn to say goodbye. How sweet. He approached me and mashed his lips against mine for a split second.

"Bye," he said quickly and walked out the kitchen. I stood in the same spot watching the place where Ron stood only a matter of seconds before. Harry watched Ron walk out the door and he gestured that he would go retrieve Ron. I only shook my head and turned on my heel to face Draco. I heard Harry sigh as I stood completely frozen staring at nothing. The realization of what had just happened hadn't hit me yet.

As soon as I heard the front door close behind Harry, the tears started pouring as if I had a couple of waterfalls for eyes. At that moment I didn't care anymore, I had reached my limit. I cried for everything that had happened, I cried for Ron, I cried for myself. I buried my face in my hands as I cried harder and harder with every second. My knees were starting to give in, buckling as if there were no tomorrow. I only hoped that I would fall to the floor. The pain I would feel would not be as hurtful as the pain I felt in my chest.

But before I could have the opportunity to fall, a pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around me. I wrapped my arms tightly around Draco's body and buried my face into his shoulder, soaking Ron's sweater with salty tears as he stroked my head, whispering comforting words into my ear.

"Shh, it's alright Hermione," he whispered as I hiccoughed and gasped for air. I grasped him tighter and he returned the feeling. I didn't care that it was Draco Malfoy who was comforting me because of the problems I was having with Ron.

Draco stroked my jaw line with his finger and tilted my chin upwards so that my tear filled chocolate eyes met his silver diamond ones. I watched his mouth, his lips part as he was about to say something to me. I wasn't thinking, I found myself in a state of vulnerability and my lips, although my mind said otherwise, puckered up and closed onto Draco's.

My heart was pounding so hard against my chest that I thought it would just jump out and run off with the spoon or something. Draco was stiff for a moment, shock taking over him completely. Although his lips didn't respond, I could still slightly taste him. It was as if I was eating some delectably forbidden fruit, which really, he was. It's Draco Malfoy; he's the last person I should be snogging.

OH MY GOD.

The realization of what I had just done hit me as I shot my eyes open just as I heard Ron's voice from the kitchen doorway.

"I knew it."

Shit, all hell is about to break lose.

And it did.

Ron charged towards Draco, throwing punches in different directions, hitting Draco wherever he could. Draco pushed me away to avoid getting attacked by Ron and I fell the floor in horror watching the awful scene before me. The sound of bone against flesh echoed through the kitchen with the occasional curse from Ron. Draco avoided the majority of Ron's punches and kept trying to reason with Ron to calm down. He wasn't very successful.

"Ron, stop, let me explain. Goddammit." After getting frustrated that Ron wasn't cooperating, Draco threw a single punch straight into Ron's face, causing Ron to fall backwards onto the floor. He had a bleeding nose. Ron looked at Draco in disbelief.

"You didn't calm down," Draco shrugged. I whimpered quietly in the background and both men looked towards me. Well, Draco looked; Ron simply glared at me as if he could kill me. It sent chills down my spine, the glare completely frightened me. He stood clutching his bloody nose and pointed a finger towards me.

"Dis is ober Hermiobe, I neber wand to see you again." With that, Ron stormed out the kitchen and out the front door and out of my life.

**A/N: **Et voila! So sorry for a sort of short chapter after such a long update. School is insane, I have absolutely no time for anything anymore! But anyways, please review/comment, it really means a lot to me! Love you all xoxo

-Necia89


	6. Let the Heartache Commence with a Dash

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story, blah blah blah.

**Chapter Six – Let the Heartache Commence, With a Dash of Eye Candy for Comfort**

"Don't leave me!" I stretched out my arms in attempt to grab my angel. I found myself in the familiar dark place, sprawled on the cold floor in complete darkness. But something was different. From the corner of my eye I saw something glimmer. I tried to turn my head, but it was too heavy. I started to panic. The glimmering grew closer and I heard a familiar voice say my name.

"Hermione,"

It was my angel, he returned! But he sounded as if he was suffering, depressed. A knot formed at the back of my throat.

"HERMIONE!"

I woke with a start. That was the second time this month I had the same dream. The angel in my dream returned once I was in the dark place, but he was sad and I always woke up when he yelled out my name. I laid there in my bed for a moment trying to understand-wait, when did I come to bed? Oh wait, it's all coming back now, vaguely.

I don't even remember what happened after Ron stormed out of the house. It was all too much, I only remember Draco kneeling down beside at one point, and his beautiful silver eyes were the last thing I saw before everything blacked out.

I had no idea for how long I had been out. Harry and Ron had left sometime in the early afternoon and it was much too dark outside for it to be supper time. Then the memories came hurling back at me as if Zeus struck me with his lightning bolt.

Ron had ended our relationship and the chance that we could remain friends seemed only too slim. I had the worst fight I had ever had with Ron and now he hates my guts. He thinks that I was cheating on him with Draco because he saw me kiss him.

Oh Merlin, I _kissed _Draco.

Bloody hell.

But does it really count? I mean, he didn't kiss me back; he just sort of stood there completely frozen. His lips didn't respond at all, I was doing all the work. I must say that he does have such soft lips and I'm sure he would have tasted better if I had gotten my tongue in his mouth. It was more like me mashing my lips up against his. It doesn't count right?

I rubbed my eyes and hoisted myself up with my elbows. I gave a small gasp as I looked around the room and saw Draco sitting in a chair he brought up from downstairs, fast asleep in the most awkward looking position.

He was sitting at an angle, with one leg hanging over the arm rest, his back curved, arms crossed, and his head slowing falling forwards toward his chest. He snorted as his head flopped and suddenly woke up; looking around as if someone had woke him. He looked around his surroundings and must have remembered where he was and why the moment he saw me sitting on my bed.

"You're awake," he started as he stood and stretched his arms as I saw a glimpse of the Dark Mark. I merely nodded. He had removed Ron's furry sweater and was wearing a tight muscle shirt. He looked incredibly sexy as he stretched; ugh he was probably doing it on purpose. What a stupid, annoying ferret. Can't you see that I've just been horribly dumped and that I'm on the brink of breaking down again? I don't have time to ogle at the way Ron's too small muscle shirt is practically splitting at the seams along your incredible muscles. Or the way your arms flex as you stretch. Or to adore how your blonde hair tickles your face and the way you look at me through your hair with those gorgeous silver eyes.

Shut up brain. No one gave you permission to speak. This is _Draco Malfoy_. Don't you remember how he used to taunt us in school?

Merlin, I'm referring to myself as "us".

You just want to keep admiring his sexiness, admit it, even if it is Malfoy, you _like_ him.

I told you to shut up!

After I had finished arguing with myself, I brought my knees to my chin and hugged my legs. I looked away from him as he frowned and bit his lip, lost for words. "I'm sorry for what happened."

"It wasn't your fault," I whispered so quietly I barely heard myself. "Ron and I weren't on good terms for a while. Our relationship would have ended sooner or later." I felt a knot form at the back of throat again. Man, why did I have to cry so much and so easily? I lowered my head onto my knees as I felt a tear escape.

"Is there anything I can do?" Draco asked helplessly. I shook my head a tad more violently than I had expected, giving myself a slight headache. He sighed quietly and left my room, closing the door behind him. Once the door was closed, I cried myself to sleep once more.



I woke up the next day, having slept horribly the whole night. I kept waking up in the middle of the night, sometimes because of the rain drops splashing up against my window and once or twice from the same dream. It was getting quite annoying. I looked over at my clock and it was only six in the morning. I could have rolled back and attempted to fall back to sleep, but I probably would have ended up just getting frustrated with all the tossing and turning. I crawled out of bed and dragged myself to the loo.

I looked at myself in the mirror as I brushed my teeth. I was a complete mess, but I didn't care. My hair had curled and was tangled up into one big puffy blob at the top of my head, I had dark circles underneath my bloodshot eyes, and I had some residue on my face. Probably dry mucus, tear stains from all the crying or drool or all three. I pulled the blob that was my hair back into a ponytail after I had finished brushing my teeth and washed my face. I am a sexy, young, confident woman. Ha!

I headed downstairs, forcing myself not to look around my bedroom to look at Ron's belongings that he was sure to retrieve as soon as he had the chance. The light from the television in the living area was on when I reached the bottom of the stairs. I peeked into the room and saw Draco sprawled sexily on the couch, facing away from me. He had one leg hanging off the edge of the couch and one hand intertwined with his hair. When did he get so incredibly sexy? He was sitting for Merlin's sake and I was drooling.

He must have either heard me come in or felt me watching him because he turned his head to face me. I blushed slightly and lowered my head.

"Good morning," he began. "How are you feeling?"

"Alright, I didn't sleep very well," I answered as I shrugged my shoulders.

"I was thinking," he sat up on the couch. "I'm the one at fault for getting you in this situation in the first place. I should have left sooner so that your relationship with the weasel wouldn't be in jeopardy. I don't want to sound rude or anything, I very much appreciated your hospitality, but I believe that I should leave before I cause you anymore problems."

I looked up at him, shocked.

"Don't be ridiculous Malfoy," I said as I shook my head. "Ron and I already had issues before you came along. My life with Ron was in a rut, it wasn't going anywhere. Ending the relationship was probably one of the smartest things Ron has ever done, for the both of us."

"That may be the case, _Hermione, _but I don't think you would have wanted the relationship to end the way it did. He was obviously jealous at the way you would ogle at me." He put an annoying emphasize on my name and smirked at his last comment, teasing me with his eyes. I blushed feverishly.

"Don't be so proud of yourself Malfoy, you had nothing to do with the reasons my relationship ended." I knew what I had said was stupid and I had just walked into a dead end. He raised an eyebrow at me, giving me a look of disbelief.

"Is that so? So the weasel wasn't pissed at all when he saw you kissing me? Might I remind you," he walked towards me. "That ever since I stepped foot in your house, Ronald suspected an affair between the two of us?" He came excruciating close to my face. He was taller than I was and I had to crane my neck slightly to look up at him. He looked down into my eyes, piercing them with his breathtaking diamonds. He stood there for a moment just staring into my eyes before he backed away at a more respectable distance.

What a tease.

"I felt that I have caused you enough trouble," he continued as he crossed his arms behind his back. I simply shook my head in disagreement.

"Where will you go? I think you're being completely absurd. I don't think you should leave until you have a stable and secured place to live. And," I bit my lip as I hesitated. "As much as I hate the feeling of being babysat, you told Harry to stay here to take care of me." He cocked an eyebrow at me again. I don't blame him, it was a lame excuse and not to mention a terrible lie.

"I have the feeling that you don't want me to leave just because I don't have another place to go." He flashed me his annoying but oh-so-sexy smirk. "Do you want me to stay here with you?"

YES! Yes, yes, and three times yes! Say yes you dumbass!

"It's up to you really," I shrugged my shoulders. "I can't force you to stay if you don't want to." To be honest, I was getting used to having Draco around the house. Something inside me was hoping he would stay longer. I didn't want to be alone right now, which is strange for someone who likes their independence. Draco could be quite helpful around the house without having to ask him. The house would always be clean when I'd come home from the ministry, but that was when I was still with Ron. These days I just stayed home, having nothing to do without Harry or Ron. I figured he would just cast a cleaning charm to clean the house but throughout the time he had been living here, I hadn't seen his wand.

Although, I almost did a glimpse of one. Shut up brain.

He watched me carefully, trying to make sense of my words and body language, as if trying to figure out my real reasons for not wanting him to leave. I wasn't exactly lying to him, just not telling him certain details. He stared straight into my eyes again for a moment in complete silence. He smirked again when I shifted uncomfortably.

"It's alright if you fancy me Granger," he moved closer to me again. My heart skipped a beat when there was barely an inch between us.

I couldn't move and my lips decided to have a mind of their own. They were slightly puckering as if they were ready for a fantastic snog fest.

"You're not the same Granger I knew back in school, you've grown up and weasel is going to regret the rest of his life for ending your relationship and not knowing how to cherish you."He then softly ran a finger along my cheekbone, chuckling lightly when I shuddered underneath his touch. Damn, why did I have to react that way?

"I'll stay a little longer," he whispered. I could feel his sweet breath on my face. "But only because you can't live without me." With that he walked away to the kitchen.

Annoying ferret!



_Three weeks later_

I need to distract myself. Draco was such an annoying tease and I kept being reminded of Ron in every room of the house. Seeing a pair of his furry socks would bring tears to my eyes and I would end up running to the bathroom to quietly weep.

Draco, annoying as he was, was very comforting. I was glad that he stayed, even if he thought I fancied him. Which, I don't.

I felt that I could trust him, oddly enough. He would listen to me dither on about my failed relationship and he would lightly rub my back and hold my hand when my voice would begin to crack and a tear would escape. Other times he would hold me for hours in his strong arms. That would somehow make me feel at ease. He would carry me to bed when I would cry myself to sleep in his arms. He was extremely sweet and considerate, using careful words when he would comfort me.

After some time, my constant crying stopped and I could almost laugh at some of the things Draco would say. I was learning that he was quite easy to get along with.

He was a tease though. I couldn't help myself when he would lightly touch my arm or he would look at me with those piercing eyes. I would simply melt. He enjoyed himself. I only wished that I could have an effect like that on him too.

We were chatting in the breakfast nook one morning, some three weeks after Ron and Harry had left on their mission.

A small tapping on the window caught our attention as Draco walked over to allow an elegant barn owl swoop in. The owl stood quite proud on the breakfast table and stuck out its small leg which had a letter tied around it.

"Strange," he said. "That's my mother's owl Metis."

"How did she find out where you were?" I asked. No wonder the owl seemed proud. It was a Malfoy owl.

"My mother probably has no clue where I am, but Metis is a clever owl. She can find anyone in our family without having to know an address."

"Oh I see, so it's almost like she has a homing device on you,"

"A what?"

"Never mind." I began to clean up the dishes from our breakfast that Draco surprised me with. I had no idea that he knew how to cook. When I turned back to face him, Draco had a blank look on his face. He was paler if that was possible and he had crinkled the parchment tightly into the fists of his hands. It slightly frightened me. "Draco, what's wrong?"

He looked at me with cold eyes. His eyes were almost transparent, like two pieces of grey ice.

"My father is dead. And my mother is dying."

**A/N:** Aw, I think Draco needs a hug. I'm there are lots of people willing to give him one or two. Anyways, hope you enjoyed this chapter; it's longer than my other ones yay. Thank you for all your lovely reviews/comments! Don't forget to do so for this chapter!

-Necia


	7. Confessions of a Slytherin Prince

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story.

**Chapter Seven – Confessions of a Slytherin Prince**

I was completely stunned, unsure of what to say. I tried to think back when my parents died for some idea of the comforting words my friends gave me. But they too were lost for words. Nothing I thought I could say to Draco seemed right; I was having the ultimate brain fart.

Draco stood motionless with a blank expression, as if made of stone. He looked at me, as if he would find in me the answer to what he should do or how he should react. It broke my heart to see him in such a state and I to be so helpless.

I opened my mouth in attempt to say something, but when nothing came out, I simply closed my mouth again. He closed his gorgeous eyes that had turned to two pieces of grey ice, sighed, and walked out of the kitchen. I stood in the same spot for a moment before I decided to follow him. I found him sitting on the couch, staring intently at the fireplace. The weather was getting colder and he had lit a fire earlier that morning. He had his hands folded into a fist and rested underneath his chin, the piece of parchment still tightly clenched within his fist. He was in a pensive state, someplace far where I couldn't join him and see what he was seeing.

I sat down next to him and we sat in silence. I watched his face, completely emotionless. The flames from the fire were alive in his ice-cold eyes as he continued to stare at them, engulfing the firewood as it cracked underneath the fire's scorching mercy. I shifted uncomfortably after a minute or two as he lowered his head.

"I have a place to go to now," he started. I glanced quickly at him in shock before turning my attention to the fire. I could feel him turn his head to watch my reaction to what he just said.

"You see," he continued in a soft voice, that if it wasn't for the given circumstances, I would have melted. "The only reason I was living on the streets was because I couldn't literally, and physically, get past the gates to Malfoy Manor. My father made it so." He sighed slightly and I could feel him watching me carefully. "Do you care to hear my story Hermione?"

I looked at him curiously; he looked deeply into my eyes as if searching for something. The way he said my name, normally, not mockingly helped him to catch my attention. Was he finally going to confess why he disappeared after the war? Where he had been these past years and why the Slytherin prince had turned Slytherin hobo? I was intrigued. I bit my lip and nodded as I listened to the confessions of a Slytherin prince.

"Draco Malfoy," he began. "Slytherin prince, heir to the prosperous Malfoy fortune, Death Eater, ferret," he flashed me a smirk.

'All the names that I am known as and have acquired over the years. I grew up through the aid of my parents, as a proud and arrogant being, having the need to feel proud of where I came from and what I was to become.'

'I more or less always knew about my father's Dark past and my mother encouraged me and taught me to idolize this Dark Lord that I never met, to understand that because I was a pure-blood, everyone was lower than me.'

'I was taught to hate anyone not from pure-blood decent, although I never actually understood why, just the apparent fact that their blood was "dirty". I would play along in attempts to have my father feel proud of his only son and heir. But no matter what I did, no matter how extreme, it was never enough. I was an embarrassment to him and I would always be."

He really knew how to keep my interest in what he was saying. I was soaking in every word that spilled from his gorgeous mouth.

"When I told my parents I would join the followers of Voldemort as my father did, my mother was absolutely distressed and my father laughed like a maniac for days. That crossed the line and I was determined to prove that I was worthy of being called a Malfoy, something my father tended to remind me otherwise.'

'In order to have become a Death Eater and receive the Dark Mark, I was to be given a test from Voldemort and be completely successful. Only then would I prove that I was worthy.'

"What was the test?" I asked. Draco obviously was successful in whatever he had to do, he had the Dark Mark. As much as I didn't want to interrupt him, I was dying to know what this so called test was.

He gave me a sideways glance through his hair, smirking slightly before he spoke.

"Are you certain you want to know?" I nodded. His face grew grim, as if embarrassed.

"I killed someone." He paused for a moment, watching me carefully through his hair. I was shocked, but refused to show it. I had never killed someone or known anyone apart from Voldemort and his followers. We were silent for a minute or two before I spoke again in a small whisper.

"Who did you kill?" He sighed slightly before he spoke again.

"A couple," he paused again and looked at me with pain in his eyes. "My father was assigned to assassinate them, but as my test I was to kill at least one of two. When the moment came, I didn't want to kill these people who were completely innocent. I was seventeen for fuck's sake." I hadn't heard his curse like that before, at least not since I picked him up from the streets.

'There were witnesses so there was no way I could fool Voldemort. My father would have gladly done the job for me and claimed that I had done it, but only to save him from embarrassment.'

"He edged me on, yelling at me, forcing at me to cast the spell. He called me worthless and wished that I had never been born. It took all my strength not to direct my wand at his chest instead. I closed my eyes and it was done. I killed the man I think, I wasn't sure. When I saw what I had done, I vomited on the floor and almost passed out. I couldn't bear to kill the other person, my father took that into his own hands.'

'And so we returned back to Voldemort's hiding place, where he personally checked my wand to see if I had killed at least one of the two people and searched the witness Death Eater's mind to make sure I had committed one of the murders. He seemed satisfied enough." He then pointed to the faded and permanent tattoo on his left forearm.

"And so it was done, I accompanied the other Death Eater's on their missions, causing havoc and what not. I never murdered anyone after the one time. The memory of it will haunt me forever."

"But it wasn't your fault," I interrupted. "Your father only edged you on in order to provoke you. He was manipulating you." He gave me a crooked smile.

"Oh Hermione, you'd think differently if you knew _who_ I killed." His words sent shivers down my spine.

"Did I know them?"

"You may have, I'm not certain, not many people did. They weren't very well known in the wizarding world." Did he just contradict himself? He glanced at me for a minute before me spoke again, pushing my thoughts to the back of my mind. "Anyways, should I continue?" I nodded.

"The wrath of Voldemort continued and I found myself in the middle of it, and what for? I had decided to become what my father was, in attempts that he would see me as his equal, and it didn't change a thing. Not one single bloody thing. I had murdered an innocent person, witnessed killings and tortures, and even then, I was still the worthless son of Lucius Malfoy.'

'I will regret until the day I die, the moment that I received this mark. I damn the day. I was so disgusted with everything and everyone, including myself. I saw how my father being a Death Eater put our whole family in jeopardy and he didn't give a damn and now I had joined him. And so I turned against everyone and everything that was my life.'

'My mother was agonized and full of heartbreak from my betrayal. I remember the last time I tried to step foot on Malfoy grounds, I was trying to sneak back in to retrieve some belongings and see my mother for the last time. Being a thick headed git, I had left my wand in my room. As soon as I put my hands on the gates, I was shot back and I landed some feet away on my voluptuous arse.' He winked at me as he smirked, again. So annoying!

'My beloved father had placed a curse on the manor and its grounds that I was never to allowed to step foot on Malfoy soil. Such a loving father, that son of a bitch.'

'My mother, being a brilliant witch when dealing with curses, not with choosing husbands obviously, tweaked the curse so that I would only temporarily not be allowed on Malfoy soil until my father died. He of course, was much too busy being thrown into Azkaban to notice.'

'My so called friends, who once had wide open doors for me, slammed them in my face. Other people were suspicious of my change of heart and were wary about offering their homes to me. Dumbledore believed in me and offered me a place at Hogwarts. If you remember back in seventh year, I was gone for most of the year, running errands with "daddy" and I only returned some time before the war began.'

'Afterwards when Dumbledore died shortly after the war, I felt that I really no place to go. I did manage to use my never failing charm to jump from bed to bed, if you know what I mean."

"You became more of a man whore than you already were." I rolled my eyes at the thought. He was the biggest man whore in the school and even with every girl knowing so, their knickers seemed only eager enough to fall to the floor at the sight of him.

"You know it, _Hermione_. You probably wanted me in your knickers too." I glared at him intensely. "If only looks could kill. I'm teasing don't worry, don't get your big knickers tied in a knot." Argh! But he sure knew how to get around, all the sleeping around seemed to keep him in good shape.

"A year ago however," he continued, a more serious face overlooking his teasing one, "I heard that my dearest auntie Bellatrix had me as number one on her hit list. There was no way I was going to be able to defend myself, being wandless, in a sense. I had to hide, and that is why you found me all shaggy looking and dirty. It was a disguise. Still sexy as hell though, considering all your drool the night you brought me into your house."

"So the letter from your mother," I said ignoring his last comment. His smirk died away.

"Apparently my father has died in Azkaban and I am allowed to return home and be by my mother's side on her deathbed." A gloomy mask shadowed Draco's flawless features. "I'd like to go see my mother, but I am not certain if it just another of my lovely aunt's plots."

Hesitatingly, I placed my hand on his leg.

"I'll go with you."

He gave me a sideways glance, puzzled by my words.

"I need to get out of this house," I continued. "And even if it a trap, I didn't become an Auror because I thought the job would be easy." He continued to give me a puzzled look, as if weighing out his options.

"Absolutely not, it could be dangerous," he answered finally in a stern voice.

"Oh _please_. Don't give me that rubbish. I'm going with you Draco, like it or not." I stood and placed my hands on my hips.

Draco looked me up and down, slowly and licked his lips. Good God, did he seriously just check me out?

"You're a stubborn little witch Hermione, and even if I leave at three in the morning, you'd be awake and waiting for me at the door by two-thirty." I smiled triumphantly. Take that ferret boy! "That doesn't mean I approve of you coming with me."

I waved my hand aimlessly in the air, as he tended to do to me.

"When do we leave?" He shook his head and lowered his head as he did. "There is no way in hell you're going to trick me Malfoy, I'll track you down."

"Doesn't that make you feel like a stalker?" I glared at him once more and he laughed aloud. Even his laugh was sexy. What wasn't sexy about him?

"You looked like you just sucked on a lemon every time you glare at me." That's what. Ugh. What a complete arse.

"Don't tempt me Malfoy,"

"Whatever you say, _Hermione_."

Argh!

**A/N: **Yes, another chapter done! Thanks to my faithful readers who reviewed, you guys are awesome! Reviews are encouraging (hint hint)  anyways, hoped you enjoy this chapter, probably the longest one yet.

-Necia


	8. Malfoy Manor

**Disclaimer:** I own nothing but the story. And maybe Draco for a few hours, but who wouldn't?

**Chapter Eight – Malfoy Manor**

We left that very evening. Since Draco was thick enough to leave his wand at the manor, we decided on side-by-side apparation. The manor was connected to the Floo network but only to specific places. I hate flying so there was no way in bloody hell I was throwing myself onto the back of a broom. The only broom I own is the one I use to sweep the floor when I feel like acting like a muggle.

So side-by-side apparation it was. However, pratface Malfoy was taking advantage of the situation and was enjoying himself a bit too much. When we were about to leave, I offered him to take my hand. He did, at first, setting the butterflies in my stomach off in a frenzy. But as I was about to apparate, Draco snaked his free hand around my waist and drew me in closer to him in such a way that we were face to face.

Good God, I could almost taste him we were so close. I sighed slightly when he gave me his crooked smile and if possible, pulled me closer and tighter to his body. Every inch of our bodies was touching, literally. I could feel a bulge pressing hotly against my leg and my breasts were pressed tightly up against his chest. I turned a bright crimson and lost my train of thought.

"Well?" he whispered. His sweet breath hit my face and I felt weak in the knees, the usual affect he had on me. At that moment, I was glad he was holding me or else I would have fallen flat on my face like a loser pissed drunk. He smiled teasingly at me, licking his lips sensually. Oh if only those were _my _lips.

Snap out of it Granger. What the hell is wrong with me? Why was I letting him hold in such a way? He had no reason to. Why wasn't I pushing him away and demanding a bit more respect as a woman?

But I couldn't. It was as if I was under some sort of major brain freeze trance. Ugh, how I loathe him.

No you don't. You actually really like him. You find him extremely attractive and wish you could snog him within an inch of his life.

Shut up brain and cooperate.

Just stating the truth.

Shut up!

I cleared my throat before I found the words to speak, as if trying to come back down to earth.

"You don't have to hold me so closely Draco," I managed to squeak. "It's not like we're a couple, it makes me feel uncomfortable."

LIES!

His teasing look died away and was instantly masked by a stern and serious look as he released me. He stood straight and folded his arms behind his back and bowed his head at me. His almost flawless features were more profound and new lines appeared around his mouth and forehead. His lips were no longer a teasing smile, but rather pursed into a pale straight line. He cleared his throat before speaking.

"I'm sorry you feel that way Hermione, I would never want to make you feel uncomfortable." He offered me his hand. "Is this alright?"

Lost for words, I simply nodded and placed my small hand in his much larger one. He squeezed it tightly as he gave me a sideways glance through his hair and smirked.

Prat.

Visualizing the apparation point that the git had given me earlier, I closed my eyes so that I could concentrate on where we were going and not on the fact that ferret boy was lightly making small circles on my palm with his thumb. It's not as easy trying to concentrate when your heart is beating as fast as if you were running.

I somehow managed to apparate to our destination, some feet away from Malfoy Manor. I had never seen the manor up close and personal, only in pictures from magazines and newspapers. We could see the magnificent house from the hill we were standing on.

We made our way slowly down the steep hill as the sun was setting in the background. Draco was silent for once as he walked ahead of me, cautious of his surroundings, listening for any movement. I had my wand at the ready and was having difficulties in trying not to slip down the hill. The soggy leaves that had fallen weren't helping as I tried to balance myself with my arms. At the steepest part of the hill, Draco stopped and turned around to offer me his hand once more. I smiled stupidly and reached for his hand. If only it was that simple.

As I stretched my hand out to him, I lost my balance and ended up falling forwards onto Draco. With nothing to grab onto, we fell backwards and went flying down the rest of the hill, scraping our legs and arms on the dry, rough ground. I held onto Draco for dear life.

We landed at the bottom of the hill with a loud thump and groans from the both of us. And then we got up and walked inside of his house.

Ha! Yeah right.

Draco landed on his back with me on top of him; my legs wide open around his lower body. My hair had fallen out of its ponytail and was tickling his face as I looked down at him. His hands were clamped tightly around my hips as he blinked away stars from his eyes. After he had focused, he met my stare and smiled. Oh bloody hell.

He traced a finger down my spine, sending multiple shivers throughout my body as I closed my eyes. He ran his free hand through my hair and pulled my face closer to his as my heart pumped faster and louder. Our faces met and his breathing tickled my face.

He stared directly into my eyes and ever so lightly, he traced the shape of my lips with the tip of his tongue. I couldn't breathe. He continued to pierce my eyes with his silver stare. I had to close my eyes at that point and I parted my lips slightly, as to allow him entrance, to let him snog me as if there were no tomorrow. But I could feel the teasing prat smile underneath my lips and recoil slightly away from me.

"I'm guessing this doesn't make you uncomfortable at all," he whispered. Damn him. I shot open my eyes and he had a teasing smirk plastered on his gorgeous face. I glared at him and abruptly stood up, losing my balance at first as I wiped off dirt and leaves out of my hair and off my clothes. I was still dizzy from his almost kiss, not mention standing up so quickly didn't help. He laughed lightly.

"I don't see what's so funny, Malfoy," I snapped glaring at him once more. "I'm going to ask you politely to never do that again."His laughter died away as he bowed his head at me in apology, coughed, and turned to face the magnificent Malfoy Manor as if nothing had happened. Ugh how I despised him.

Even from the outside, it was a gorgeous house. Who would guess that such a beautiful Victorian home would be the household of a murderous Death Eater and his family?

Draco walked hesitatingly to the tall black gates. He raised his one hand towards the gates, reluctant to whether or not to touch it. He looked back at me and smiled slightly before turning back to the gates. Slowly, he reached up for one of the bars and wrapped his hand around it as I held my breath.

Nothing happened.

I walked up beside him as he breathed out quietly. He pushed opened the gates and we walked along to the long path stretching out to the main doors of the manor. There was grass, trees, and various arrangements of flowers leading up the path, but the grass had turned brown, the leaves had fallen off the trees and the flower bushes were bare. Autumn had definitely settled in.

The manor was more a smaller and black version of the Palace of Versaille only that instead of the whole building being a rectangular shape, the manor consisted of round towers and triangular roof tops as well. A large arch lead to the main doors and there were several windows on each level.

We approached some small steps of stone stairs leading up towards the main doors made of dark oak and elegant glass panels. Above the door was a glass panel with the words in an elegant Celtic script, "Malfoy Manor". He looked back at me before lifting the knocker.

We waited for a few moments until in silence until it was broken by the sound of unlocking doors. The doors creaked open and a small, squeaky voice of a female house-elf greeted us.

"Master Malfoy," she squeaked. "Welcome home sir and guest." She opened the door wider, scurrying out of the way to allow us in.

The entrance was merely a beautifully decorated spacious hallway that led to the rest of the house. Even thought it was a hallway, it was lavishly decorated with a couple of fine velvet couches and a beautiful Persian rug, and a couple of small and no doubt, expensive paintings of landscapes. Above the exiting archway to the remainder of the house, were two family crests. The one I recognized was the Black family crest, no doubt from Narcissa's side of the family, and I assumed the one next to it was the Malfoy family crest. It was silver and green of course, with a couple of serpents intertwining together to form an "M" in the middle.

We walked forward, leaving the hallway entrance behind us and entering an even more spacious living room. The inside of the house wasn't as dark as the outside. The walls were painted in a pale rose pink colour, adorned with several pictures and paintings of the family. The room separated into different directions, most likely leading to a study or dining area. In the centre of the room, there were luxurious cream coloured leather couches surrounding a circular glass coffee table. Facing the couches was a handsome fireplace with a fur rug stretched along the length of it. Crystal chandeliers hung from the ceiling, the candles flickering to life as the sunlight escaped the room. I noticed that there were no lamps or any other form of lighting in the house apart from candles. I rather liked it. There were several elegant statues and exotic plants placed in various spots in the room as well. It was a very welcoming feeling, strange being the house of a Malfoy.

Before reaching this seating area, was a grand staircase that split into two equally almost towering spiral ones. I followed Draco up these stairs, taking the staircase to the right. We reached a vast corridor, also covered in paintings, mirrors, sculptures, and vases along the way. There were several doors along the way as we walked to the end of the corridor, reaching a pair of magnificent doors as I assumed lead to the master bedroom. Throughout this time, I had not said a word, having been too much in awe as I took in every inch of the Malfoy Manor that I saw. I continued to look around curiously as Draco tapped lightly on the large oak doors.

We heard a faint "come in" and Draco opened the door and led the way into the master bedroom. The curtains were drawn and no candles were lit, making it much too difficult to see in detail what the room was like. I could only make out the large matrimonial bed in the center of the room. It was a much larger, king-sized four poster bed, where the headboard, wooden canopy, and posts connected with each other. A delicate material was used as drapes and was drawn around the bed, obscuring the figure, much too small for the over-sized bed. Draco took hold of my hand as if asking for moral support. I didn't let go. We walked towards the bed as he took a deep breath and gently pulled back the delicate drapes, revealing his sick mother. He was taken back.

Narcissa Malfoy lay practically lifeless in this over-sized bed, surrounded by pillows and blood-stained towels. She appeared paler if possible, as she coughed harshly into one of the many towels around her, staining it once more. I couldn't imagine the pain she was going through, whatever it was she had, but just seeing her cough up blood made me sick to my stomach. She looked up wearily to see her visitor and a faint smile appeared upon her chapped, dry lips.

"Draco," she whispered, barely audible. Draco stood stunned, completely motionless. I squeezed his hand, bringing him back down to earth. He shook his head slightly and sat down next to his mother on her death-bed. I quietly retreated, closing the door behind me as I watched Draco take his mother's hands in his own.

------------------------------

I had walked around the manor aimlessly for what seemed hours. I attempted to find a study or library where I could snuggle up with a good book, but failed miserably. I couldn't even manage to get back to the staircase. All the corridors looked the exact same, although I'm sure if I tried looking harder, there would be something distinct about each one. At least I hoped.

Long story short, I ended up in a spectacular bedroom. I stayed put in this room, hoping that Draco would eventually come looking for me. My choice of room was far better than I thought.

The bedroom was fanbloodytastic. The room seemed fit for a prince and my first guess was that I wandered into Draco's bedroom; the Slytherin prince's chambers. The room had a green, silver, and black colour scheme of course and upon entering the room, there was an elegant dark green daybed with silver decorations. The other chairs in the rooms, such as those around a small table at the end by the windows, were also made from the same material as the daybed. A king-sized bed was in the center of the room, up against the wall. It was made of wood and painted black with beautiful designs hand-crafted onto the headboard. A large canopy hung overhead with a light green sheer material as drapes tied back and pinned against the wall. The bed sheets were made of green silk and there were silver and green cushions placed neatly on top of large, fluffy, black pillows. A handsome black, silver, and green throw was, well, thrown over the bed as most are. There were several large, wall length windows around the room, all with elegant black and green drapes, tied back with a silver-coloured material. On either side of the bed was a large silver mirror. Opposite to the bed were doors that lead to the closet, a dresser that had various bottles of colognes and a grand mirror, and a door leading to what I assumed was the bathroom.

I stood for a few moments, simply gawking at the room. The sun had finally set and the room was lit by the candles placed around the room. I went to sit on the bed, practically sinking into the large and comfortable mattress and then laid down. I was much too comfortable and ended up falling asleep without even realizing it.

I woke up some hours later, feeling quite refreshed yet still wanting more sleep. It took me a minute to realize that I wasn't in my bed and it wasn't even my house and that I really had no bloody idea where I was. I did manage to convince myself that I indeed knew where I was and that I had fallen asleep in what I guessed was Draco's magnificent bed.

The bed covers were wrapped around my body and the sheer drapes were drawn around the bed. The candles had been put out and I sat up to look around the dark room with only the moonlight as a source of light. Through the sheer drapes, I made out a figure standing stiffly by the window. I was frightened at first, but when I drew the drapes, I realized it was Draco, completely motionless, with his hands folded behind his back.

"Draco?" I called out drowsily. I was still very sleepy, it must have been sometime between ten or eleven o'clock at night. He didn't react the moment he heard my voice, and didn't even turn to face me. He waved his newly retrieved wand in the air, causing the candles to come to life and illuminate the room. He then walked to the opposite side of the bed and crawled up next to me, placing his head in my lap and turned his face away from mine.

"Why, Hermione, why?" was all he said in a small pleading voice. I was rigid for a moment, not knowing what to say or do. I placed my one hand on his forehead and stroked it back through his hair, a comforting gesture my mother used to do to me. His shoulders heaved up and down slightly as he sobbed quietly. He gripped the blankets around my legs tightly in frustration as Draco Malfoy let his emotions overwhelm him. Lost for anything comforting to say, I asked Draco about his mother.

"What did you and your mother talk about for so long?" He turned to face me at that point, staring at me with his tear stained face and glistening silver eyes. He looked completely helpless; it was the most depressing thing I had seen. It should be a sin to see someone so beautiful cry so deeply as he did. Whatever his mother had said, really hit Draco hard, hard enough to make him break down. He sat up at this point and wiped away his tears, almost embarrassed.

"She didn't say much," he replied quietly, almost angrily. "She left this world five minutes after we arrived. I only go to see her long enough for her to tell me that she was sorry and that she loved me dearly." My eyes opened wide in shock and covered my mouth as I gasped slightly. I watched Draco carefully and cupped his face within my hands, staring helplessly into his water-filled eyes.

"I stayed with her the whole time," he continued. "I thought that she had simply fallen asleep but I noticed that she had grown paler, and that her hands had gone cold. I then realized that she wasn't breathing." He clenched his fists, the delicate bed sheet clamped tightly within them.

"Oh," I whispered. "Oh Draco, I'm so sorry." Each word he said broke my heart, and out of instinct, pulled him closer and brought his head to my chest. He let go of the bed sheets and wrapped his arms tightly around me instead, soaking my shirt with hot tears.

I held him for a while, letting him to cry out everything that he was feeling. I was positive that Draco wasn't one to simply break down and cry, worse in front of another being, so I figured this was healthy for him.

He eventually fell asleep, or so I assumed since it had gone quiet. I shifted slightly under his weight, attempting to let him sleep. I figured I should go home, but I was much too sleepy for some reason. I could always sleep on the daybed or go wander and eventually come upon another bedroom.

As I went to lift Draco off my chest, his grip around my waist suddenly tightened, frightening me at first.

"Stay," he said, half asleep. "Please." I peered down at him and saw his pleading eyes glistening brightly from the candlelight. It was absolutely stunning and heartbreaking at the same time. I gulped slightly, trying to figure out what I should do.

DO IT!

No, it's not right. I shouldn't stay in bed here with Draco.

But just look at him, he's so darn cute! He doesn't want to be alone. He's lonely enough now that his parents have died and his aunt is out to get him. He wants some sort of company, and he wants yours.

But most people would want to be alone when something like this happens.

GODDAMMIT JUST STAY!

I nodded. He smiled slightly and moved over to allow me to crawl under the covers. He threw the cushions, (which were merely for decoration purposes) onto the floor as I Iaid down onto one of the black, fluffy pillows. He gently threw the covers over the both of us and stared at me for a moment.

"Thank you Hermione," was all he said. He stared intensely with sleepy eyes into my own, until he finally closed them. He looked so beautiful, very much at peace. I smiled slightly to myself and turned my back to him. Within minutes, I was dreaming with my angel once again.

**A/N: **First of all, I want to thank everyone who reviewed! You're so awesome!! Anyways, sorry for the long update...October is midterm month apparently, ugh and it's been absolutely DREADFUL. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, it was longer than the others to compensate for the long update. I'm sure we all want to comfort poor sexy Draco too. Please review!

-Necia xoxo


	9. Snogging the Babysitter

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story.

**Chapter Nine – Snogging the Babysitter**

My eyes shot open. Yet again, I had the same frustrating dream where I can never get past the small ray of light that appears. How utterly annoying.

I stretched and yawned, wishing I could fall back asleep. It was a cloudy day, as if it were going to rain. Perhaps it was the delicate sheers that weren't allowing much light in. When did I get sheers? I don't remember my bed being this comfortable either or my room tripling in size. I must really stop questioning myself every morning on my whereabouts and how I ended up in some strange bed, even more so when the bed belongs to Draco Malfoy.

Draco.

I turned over to see the sleeping angel but found an empty space instead. A door opened somewhere in the room and I sat up only to wish I had remained lying down. It only lasted probably less than five seconds, but it didn't change the fact that I turned a bright shade of red.

Draco had emerged from what I was guessing the loo with nothing but a towel. And the towel wasn't even around his waist mind you. He walked towards his dresser in all his naked glory as he dried his hair with his towel. I couldn't help but let my eyes wander to where they shouldn't. He took out a pair of black silk boxer briefs and walked through another door. His closet I'm guessing.

I didn't move an inch from where I sat images of Draco's naked bum and other naked parts of him, still visible each time I blinked. He re-entered the room once more, this time semi-dressed at least as he ran his fingers through his still wet hair. Why did he always have to look so damn sexy?

He wore a pair of black dress pants, unbuttoned still so his boxer briefs were still visible. He had left the black satin dress shirt he was wearing unbuttoned as well, exposing his godly chest. I must have been drooling. He caught me watching him this time and smirked slightly as he sat down to put on a pair of socks.

"Good morning Hermione, I hope you slept well," I was blushing so badly, you could have probably fried an egg over my face. "Enjoying the view much?" Ugh.

"Good morning Draco," I answered firmly as I got out of the bed. "I slept fine thank you but I think I should be on my way." His smirk died away instantly.

"Oh," his stare shifted away from me and onto the shoes he was putting on.

"You seemed surprised,"

"I just thought you would stay for the funeral at least."

Damn. I felt like a total git. How I could I possibly forget about his mother passing away? It wasn't as if she had died last year.

"Of course I'll stay for the funeral," I was trying to change what I had said before about leaving. "I just meant that I should be on my way to get dressed. I can't obviously go to a funeral wearing jeans and a t-shirt, don't you think so?" He didn't seem to buy it at all. He stood from the chair and walked over to his dresser and picked up a comb, not saying a word to me. I followed.

He stood with his back towards me as he combed his now dry hair, letting it fall loosely around his face. I was tempted to wrap my arms around him, to take in his scent and feel his body pressed up against mine.

"I just need to go home and change," I continued. Silence. I didn't like how dramatic the situation had become. He was starting to remind me of Ron.

He turned to face me at this point, sighing and then taking my hand in his. He brought it to his lips, kissing the back of my hand ever so gently, but still giving me goose bumps all way up my arm and down to my toes.

"Hermione," he whispered. "I appreciate your concern, but I don't want to make you feel obliged to anything. You don't have to go to my mother's funeral just because you pity me."

"I am not giving you pity Draco and no one, not even you can make me feel obliged to anything. I am not someone's property that they think they can control or oblige to do something against my will." I was overreacting, but I couldn't stop. "You remind me too much of Ron and frankly, I don't think I should stay here a minute longer."

I turned to leave, but Draco caught my arm at that point and turned me around to face him once more. He pressed our bodies together and I could practically taste his cologne. He brought his face closer to mine as I felt that my heart was about to burst out from my chest. His silver eyes stared intently into mine as I could feel myself melting underneath his touch. As he did when we arrived at the manor, he lightly traced the shape of my lips with his tongue before closing our lips together on a kiss. I stood completely frozen for a minute, but relaxed when I realized how much I was enjoying it. A bit too much I'd say. He would alternate pressure in the kiss, softly at first and then press his lips a bit harder on mine, and then softly again before he parted my lips with his tongue, slipping it into my mouth. Just as I had imagined, he tasted so sweet, an almost cinnamon flavour that would leave me breathless. He slowed the kiss, kissing me gently before backing away from me. My lips were still puckered.

"I am almost certain," he said. "That the weasel could never be capable of leaving you breathless so, you see, I couldn't possibly remind you of him." He took the opportunity that I was speechless and disappeared into his closet once more. "I'll accompany you to your house!"He wasn't asking, he was stating. He was getting on my nerves and I wasn't going to allow him any longer to use his good looks to manipulate me. Or his magnificant kisses.

"If you want to I guess-"I started but didn't finish my sentence. Draco had re-emerged from his closet, fully clothed this time and I couldn't help to comparing him to a runaway model. I had almost forgotten that he had given me the most incredible kiss not even a minute ago.

"Yes?" he asked casually.

"If you want to come with me, I suppose that would be alright." Damn him.

"You wouldn't mind?" Even the thought of it was stupid.

"No, I wouldn't mind."

"Wonderful. Shall we grab your coat and go?" I nodded stupidly. I was still dumbfounded about how extraordinarily gorgeous he looked; even he was attending his mother's funeral. I couldn't believe that he had just kissed me as if it were the most normal thing in the world. And I was letting it slide. What in bloody hell.

As we walked towards the apparation point, I couldn't help but to steal glances towards Draco and admire how beautiful he was. I kept asking myself why I found him so utterly attractive now, after so many years of loathing him.

Perhaps it was the drastic change in his personality and attitude towards me. He could still be the annoying ferret I grew up with, but I had to admit that I liked him more now than I ever have before, now that the mask of an arrogant douche bag had fallen.

Once we had arrived at my house, I took extra care in my appearance, something I hadn't done in years. I cast a straightening spell on my hair and loosely curled it so it bounced freely around my face and shoulders. I didn't like wearing much make-up, I already had a rosy complexion, not the best skin in the world, but at least I didn't have to worry myself with foundation, blush and what not. I applied some lip gloss and a tad of mascara. With my favourite black dress and high heeled black boots, I must admit that I felt good. I barely dressed up since Ron stopped taking me out on extravagant dates and didn't bother with my appearance as much anymore. I sprayed on some of the expensive perfume I never used but owned for the sake of owning expensive perfume and slipped on my coat.

Draco watched me descend the stairs, making me nervous and almost trip down the stairs. Several times. When I reached the bottom, he took my hand in his and lightly kissed it.

"You look lovely Hermione," he whispered. My legs were turning into jelly. He looked at me straight in the eye as he spoke to me, giving me a tingling sensation in every part of my body. I had to sudden urge to grab him and snog him within an inch of his life, the way he had snogged me back at the manor. He seemed to had been thinking the same thing for he straightened up and moved in closer to me. I wasn't going to stop him. He had his arm around my waist and the other caressing my neck, our lips practically begging for what was next, when a small tapping on the window interrupted.

Draco sighed, almost in frustration as he released me and stepped away. I remembered how to breathe and walked over to the window to see a snowy white owl waiting to be let in. I opened the window and allowed for Hedwig to swoop in. She flew around for a moment before landing lightly on my shoulder and sticking out her leg. There were two letters from Harry, one addressed to me and the other to Draco. Hedwig took the letter addressed to Draco in her beak and flew over to him, landing on his shoulder as she had done to me.

What in bloody hell.

I watched Draco read his letter carefully, his face completely emotionless the entire time.

"What did Harry write to you?" I asked. He looked up at me with his breath-taking eyes.

"He sent me his condolences for my mother's death."

"He knows already?"

"It was in the prophet. I sent a notice so that my mother's friends would be aware of the service later today." He stared me in the eye the entire time he spoke. Was he lying to me? "He also mentioned that he and the weasel will be away longer than they had anticipated. He probably tells you that in your letter."

Oh right, my letter. I opened the letter, reading over it carefully.

"_Dearest Hermione, _

_I hope you find yourself doing well. I'm not sure if Draco is still living with you but I sent a letter to him with your address. I read in the prophet this morning about Narcissa's death and I sent my condolences."_

Draco seemed to have been telling the truth so far.

"_I hope the two of you have been getting along these past couple of months. Ron and I have been quite successful on his mission so far. We've been able to track some escaped Death Eater's and I believe we are one step closer in finding their hidden location. I would ask you to join us but I have another task for you. I want you to watch over Draco. I know that Bellatrix is looking for him and with Narcissa's death, she probably expects him to be at the manor."_

Great. I'm to be Draco's babysitter.

"_I'm not asking you to babysit him. We all know he is quite capable of taking care of himself, so stop scowling at me. I know that you're scowling so stop it. If you're there when the Death Eater's attack, because they will, you can undoubtedly handle them and interrogate them about their hideout. Because of this, you won't be needed at the ministry for the time being. _

_Another reason I'm not asking you to join Ron and me right now is simply because of Ron. The two of you didn't end things on the gentlest note and you know how Ron can get. He'll get all huffy with his knickers in a twist and make some dramatic scandal. We cannot afford distractions. I'm sorry Hermione. I wish you were here but if you were, I need to be sure that we can work as a team and honestly, I don't think that is possible right now. _

_I'll probably be coming home for Christmas. I think Ginny would have quite the fit if I didn't. Afterwards, I don't think we'll be coming home after that until sometime in the spring in time for Ginny's and my wedding._

_Take care Hermione, I hope to hear from you soon._

_All my love,_

_Harry_

_P.S. I almost forgot. Ginny insisted that you stay because she needs a shopping buddy. She would definitely murder me then if I had sent for you. Have fun shopping."_

Unfuckingbelievable.

I stuffed the letter back in its envelope and threw it at the couch. Not on it, at it.

"Something wrong?" Draco asked. He stood quietly, stroking Hedwig subconsciously as she nibbled softly on his index finger.

"Yes," I answered angrily. "I've been assigned to be your babysitter. I'm never going to leave this damn house am I?"

"I'd say more of a body guard than babysitter." I glared. "Yes, Harry mentioned that too."

"The babysitting?"

"No, that glare." Ugh. "Does it bother you that much to be around me?"

Shit.

He looked offended and he seemed to notice that I saw this and he masked his emotion.

"I'm sorry if my presence offends you Hermione," he continued. "But as that seems to be the case, I should be on my way." He turned around and started making his way to the door.

"Wait." He stopped but didn't turn around. "I don't mind being around you Draco. I'm just sick of being stuck in this house. I get reminded of Ron and then all those memories come tumbling back. I want to get out, do something new."

"Come stay at the manor with me." Merlin.

"Pardon?" He turned to face me this time.

"Come stay at the manor with me."

"Pardon?"

"Stop that. If you come stay at the manor, you would be doing your job as my babysitter as you call it and you wouldn't be confined to this house. Not to mention that you will be pampered."

"I couldn't possibly-"

"Don't think of it as some assignment Harry has given you. Think of as a form of payment."

"Payment? For what?"

"Well, how long was I staying here in your house as your guest? I think I need to repay you for all that you've done for me." He moved closer to me, taking my hand in his once more and bringing it to his chest. "Besides, since you love me so much, I doubt you want to be separated from me." He smirked at me. How I loathe him.

"I don't know Draco,"

He leaned in to kiss me, something I wasn't expecting but only lightly kissed my cheek. Tease.

"Think about it."

**A/N: **First of all, thanks for the reviews! Second, sorry for the one month hiatus...school sucks haha. But this term is almost over! Hurrah! I had a hard time writing this chapter, mostly because I didn't know what to write about. You see, I have all these things I really want to write and post but I can't! It's all that good (and juicy) stuff that leads to the climax. The middle section of a story is always the hardest to write I find. But anyways, enough dithering. I'm hoping to post chapter ten soon, I've started writing it so maybe I'll have it ready before Christmas! Please leave a review/comment, I really appreciate them and they make my day D

-Necia xoxo


	10. Undeniable Truth

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story so you can't sue me. HA!

**Chapter Ten – Undeniable Truth**

The wind bashing up against my window made me wake with a start. Damn wind. I could see the snow falling slightly against the wind and groaned. I turned away and buried myself underneath the warm covers, shunning out any images of the cold.

But now I was wide awake and sleep wouldn't return to me. I sighed and regretfully crawled out of my luxurious bed.

I had already been staying at the Malfoy manor for two weeks, this second week coming to an end and soon entering the third. Every morning didn't cease to surprise me each time I woke up and looked around my magnificent room that Draco had personally arranged for me.

It was a fairly large room, probably the size of my entire main floor of my house back in London. In the center of the room was an elegant four-poster mahogany bed with metal accents around the head and end board, shaped into vines. It had drapes surrounding it, the material thicker than the sheers around Draco's bed. On either side of the bed was a matching night table, each which had a candelabrum with dangling gemstones. A matching dresser and mirror was directly across the bed with a door on either side, one leading to the bathroom and the other to my very own walk-in closet. There were several large windows as in Draco's room and there were doors that lead to a small balcony outdoors. Draco had asked for a bookshelf to be placed in my room, placed next to a small fireplace in the corner. The entire bookshelf was filled from top to bottom with an assortment of various books of different genres. I was thrilled.

I had tried to leave after two weeks of Draco's hospitality but he insisted for me to stay. He occupied himself in the study from time to time, working out business affairs that his parents had left behind. His picture was appearing more often in the Daily Prophet like before and it seemed that things were going back to normal for Draco. At some times, he would leave the manor for a couple hours without my noticing. He would go off to meetings with important wizards and what have you, and I wasn't the wiser. I was too entertained with the books that Draco had placed in my room. He was a sneaky ferret.

Even though he was busy, he always found time to spend with me. We ate together, and chatted long into the night. I fell asleep a couple times on a couch and I would wake up in my bed. I knew that Draco would carry me back to my room, for I had woken up in his arms the times he had done so. I pretended to still be asleep however and snuggled up against his chest, taking in his wonderful scent that remained with me the whole night. I think he knew, but neither of us said anything about the subject.

Christmas was approaching. Draco wanted to hold a Christmas ball, much like the ones his mother would host when she was healthier. I had heard much about these Malfoy Christmas balls, mainly from reading about them in the Daily Prophet. They sounded simply amazing and were almost impossible to get into to unless you had personally received an invitation of course.

I was to go wedding shopping with Ginny yet again. I was so thrilled I would have jumped for joy if it wasn't for the fact that I really wasn't that joyous about the idea. At least the thought of going out with my best girl friend made the situation a bit more bearable.



"Oh, I just can't decide," Ginny huffed. "I don't think white really suits me. What about an off-white, or ivory? Hermione, what do you think?"

I sighed and shrugged my shoulders. I wasn't exactly being much help to Ginny and her dress choosing. I was sitting in a chair, not really looking at her but simply turning my head this way and that each time she came out of the change room.

"Come on Hermione," she pleaded, walking over to me and taking my hands in hers. "Help me find THE dress so I can move on with the other wedding stuff I have to get done. Please?"

I smiled at her, and feeling a bit guilty that I hadn't been helping really, stood up and walked around the shop. We had decided to try a muggle shop in London in hopes that we would find the perfect dress there. Once that was done I could go back to the manor to my books, and more importantly, to Draco. He had said he was going to stay home. I longed to be there with him.

Shut up brain.

I tried to shun the images of Draco out of my head by flipping through various dresses on the racks. But no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get Draco out of my head. Not just at that moment, but for some time now.

I noticed that Ginny had selected a dress and had scurried off to the change room. I smiled at the sight of her delight and hoped that this was the dress and followed outside the room.

"Hey Hermione," she called from within the change room.

"Yeah?"

"I've been meaning to ask you, how are you liking, or rather, hating spending time at ferret manor? I almost felt sorry for you when I heard that you had to keep an eye on Malfoy." She emerged from the room and turned to face the mirror so that I could zip up the dress. "Almost. He is quite nice to look at. I bet you're enjoying that bit of the whole babysitting thing." I smiled slightly at the mention of Draco.

"Actually, it's been quite nice. I really enjoy spending time at the manor," I had almost said with Draco.

"Is that so?" Ginny eyed me through the mirror. "How has Malfoy been treating you?"

"He's been quite nice to me actually. He's matured, somewhat since school. I really enjoy his company; he can be really sweet surprisingly. I can kind of understand why the girls at school were more than willing to rip off their knickers for him, apart from his good looks, that is."

"Your face glows when you talk about him. Did you know that?"

"Don't be silly." I felt the hotness in my cheeks rising and looked away. From the corner of my eye, I saw Ginny shake her head.

"You can't hide it from me Hermione." If possible, I blushed more. "Is he a good kisser at least?" I snapped my head back in Ginny's direction, eyes wide in shock. She simply nodded. "I figured he was. Now it would only be a true disappointment if he wasn't bloody fantastic in bed. It wouldn't make sense if he wasn't though, since like you said, girls are more than willing to rip off their knickers for him."

"Ginny-"

"It's ok Hermione," she turned to face me, taking my hands in hers once more. "I accept the fact that you are falling for a ferret. Draco." She corrected herself.

I opened my mouth to protest that she was wrong, that I wasn't falling for Draco but when no words came out, I closed my mouth again and nodded.

There, I had admitted it.

It was then that I saw it. There, in the reflection of the mirror, hanging on a mannequin. I spun around quickly and gave a small gasp. There it was my dream dress, the one I had seen in a magazine during my teenage years. The one I had hoped to wear the day I married Ron.

I knew it seemed silly, but I walked over to it. It wasn't the exact same dress, but it was similar enough to cause a wave of mixed emotions and thoughts to flow through me. I remember imagining myself walking down the aisle towards Ron, wearing this gorgeous gown and feeling nothing but happiness.

The dress I had fallen in love with was strapless with an elegant and complicated corset design along with pink beaded flowers. This particular dress had spaghetti straps and the beaded flowers were completely white except for a purple middle. The lacing for the corset had a violet satin ribbon that tied beautifully into a long bow at the back.

Nevertheless, the dress was absolutely gorgeous and wondered how we had not seen it earlier. I took the dress between my fingers and couldn't help but to think of Ron. Millions of questions raced through my mind.

What if I had never given up on our relationship? What if I had tried harder to make it work? Would I find myself shopping for my wedding dress at this moment? Did I still love him?

Did I ever love him?

He had promised me that we'd be together through thick and thin, and now that I thought of it, the promise almost sounded like the one's your teenage boyfriend would make. I wanted to forget about it all, to move on with my life. He said he loved me to death and that there could never be anything to bring up apart.

Draco.

What if I had never brought Draco back with me to my house that one night? Things would have been so different. He probably would have died in that alleyway or would have been found by Bellatrix.

And I wouldn't find myself falling completely in love with him either.

My thoughts were interrupted by Ginny's small hand on my shoulder.

"Hermione? Are you ok?" I wiped away stubborn tears that had escaped and nodded. "Were you crying?"

"No," I shook my head and smiled at her. "I was just imaging how beautiful you would look in this dress I found." I had to start moving on sometime.

Ginny's eyes widened and her face lightened up with excitement at the sight of the dress I was removing from the mannequin. She clapped her hands in glee and scampered off with the dress to the change room.

As I waited for Ginny to come back out, I walked around the store and stared out the large window up front. Across the street was a dress shop we had passed earlier where I had seen a spectacularly beautiful gown through the window. It was a red halter top dress that had a revealing cut out on the right side, showing off the curve of one's waist. The cut out stretched from the mid-back to the naval. From the mid-back to the naval was a glittery attachment that matched the neck tie of the halter. Now that I thought of it, I started to imagine myself attending the Malfoy Christmas ball in that gown, dancing closely with Draco, my body pressed against his.

To my disappointment however, the gown was gone. It shouldn't have surprised me really; it was a beautiful gown and wouldn't have crossed any wealthy woman's mind to purchase it. Bitch. Oh well.

Gasp.

My heart gave a slight jolt at the sight of him walking along the sidewalk. His blond hair blew carelessly in the light wind and he had a small sexy grin on his face. The women that walked past him would stop and turn to see him again. One of these women called to him and said something, causing him to turn and smile oh-so-gorgeously. As he turned back, he spotted me gawking at him through the window. His face changed, it almost seemed as if his face had brightened. He smiled crookedly and waved.

Now waving back isn't hard is it? Well apparently it is. As I raised my arm to wave back, the excitement of seeing him made me smack my forehead with the back of my hand. I groaned in pain and didn't even look back to see Draco. I walked back to the change rooms and found Ginny standing on a podium while a seamstress was lacing up her corset. I gasped slightly at the sight of her. She was positively beaming.

"Oh, Hermione! I love it! I think this is the one!" she exclaimed. "What do you think?"

"Ginny, you look absolutely beautiful!"

"Gorgeous." My heart skipped a beat at the sound of his silky voice. Draco came to stand next to me with his hands behind his back and smiled. Our eyes met and I somehow managed to smile back at him without drooling all over myself.

"You think so?" Ginny asked turning around this way and that.

"Definitely," Draco nodded. "Potter is very lucky. He's going to be lost for words once he sees you. I'd be damned if he doesn't fall over on his face."

"Thanks Malfoy," Ginny blushed a slightly. "Draco." He merely smiled and bowed his head.

As Ginny twirled around happily in her dress, I took the opportunity to see if I could form a proper sentence.

"So, what are you doing about muggle London?" He turned his attention to me, locking his spectacular eyes with mine. I felt so lost within his eyes, that I almost didn't hear his response.

"Just browsing," he brought his hands forward and offered me a single red rose that he had been holding, smiling as he did. "One beauty for another." I turned a bright shade of scarlet and took the rose, taking in its sweet scent.

"I hope you like roses," he continued. I nodded stupidly. I think I may have nodded for a bit too long or just too vigorously for I gave myself a slight headache.

"Yes, I love them. Thank you." I hadn't stopped nodding. He chuckled softly.

"Keep that up and your head is going to fall off that pretty neck of yours." He touched my neck softly with two cold fingers, running them ever so gently from my throat to the base of my neck. The gesture made me shiver, all the way up from my toes. He moved in closer to me, and tilted my chin up with a finger with our eyes locking once more. I parted my lips, anxious for what was next to come. He stared intensely into my eyes as he moved in, cupping my face within his cold hands and lightly pressing his lips against mine.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything," Ginny was fully changed and standing in front of us with her wedding gown between her arms. I stepped away from Draco in surprise.

Damn.

"Of course not," I replied, knowing it was a lie. I wished she would have interrupted just a few minutes later. The small kiss had only lasted less than a second. I wasn't even sure if it counted as a kiss. She eyed Draco and me curiously, smiling slightly as she shook her head and walked away. Draco and I glanced at each other quickly before following her. He smirked at me as he gave me a sideways glance, running a finger across his lips. Prat.

"Oh, I almost forgot to tell you," Ginny said when we had reached the front counter. "Harry and Ron are coming home tonight. Harry most likely sent you owl last week but since you haven't been at home, you wouldn't know now would you?"

"Oh, that's good." I said, not really paying attention.

"I'm going to make a home welcoming dinner tonight at Harry's and my flat. Do you think you could come?" I glanced longingly at Draco for a moment, twirling the rose in my hand. He was flipping through a wedding catalogue. Now that I had admitted to falling for Draco, I wanted to be with him tonight and snog him out of his mind in hopes that he would say he was falling for me too.

"Sure," I replied. I didn't sound at all thrilled. "I would be more than happy to see them after so long." Lie. If anything, I wanted to see Harry and that's all I really cared about.

"Draco, would you be able to join us?" I looked at Ginny in surprise. She gave me a small wink and smiled. My mood lightened a little.

"Oh," Draco looked back and forth between me and Ginny. "Thank you for the invitation, but don't you think I'll be eaten alive?"

"Don't be silly. You could take Ron any day. He's always been wimpy." Ginny crossed her arms across her chest. The crooked smile I had learned to love danced on Draco's lips as he looked at me. He stared at me for a moment before his smile slightly faltered.

"I think it would be best if I didn't accompany you this time, if you'd still have me another time that is." I could feel my face fall a little in disappointment. He approached me and stared a moment into my eyes. I couldn't exactly pinpoint what it was that I saw in Draco's eyes. But I was almost certain that it was some sort of conflicting pain. He sighed slightly and took my hand in his, bringing it to his lips and lightly kissing it. "I'll see you tonight at home, yes?" My face burned as I nodded, the butterflies in my stomach fluttering.

"I must be off then," he continued. "Send my regards to Potter and that wimpy mate of yours." He winked at me and said goodbye to Ginny before turning and walking out of the store. I found myself staring at the doorway, much longer than I had expected, the feeling of his lips on my hand still burning.

**A/N: **FINALLY! It's been much too long since my last update and I apologize deeply! It took so long to write this chapter mostly because of schoolwork and severe writer's block, but no worries, I'm back! Hope you all enjoyed this chapter, much love to all my loyal fans and reviewers, you guys are the best. Please review!

-Necia xoxo


	11. Massacred Potatoes

**Disclaimer: **I don't own anything jeez. Except the story...that's mine. I wonder, does anyone actually read these disclaimers?

**Chapter Eleven – Massacred Potatoes**

Ginny practically squealed in delight as she attacked Harry once he walked through the door. She nearly knocked him over and back out the door. He grunted a little and smiled, embracing her lovingly. He kissed her and once he regained his balance he walked over to me and embraced me in a brotherly hug.

"Hermione, it's so good to see you. You look good," he smiled sincerely at me.

"Thanks," I replied. "You're not looking too shabby yourself." In reality, Harry looked extremely tired. He had dark circles underneath his red, irritated eyes. Although they were bloodshot, Harry's emerald eyes were still as stunning as I remembered.

"How are things with Draco? Has he been giving you much trouble?"

"Oh," I glanced quickly at Ginny as we made our way to the kitchen. "Things are good. He's at the manor right now."

"I see." Harry fiddled with a dish cloth that was sitting on the kitchen counter.

I felt the need that I should have told Harry how I felt about Draco. I couldn't really explain why. Like Ginny, he was my best friend and it would be worse if he found out another way. I had discussed this matter with Ginny earlier, but she was unsure of how Harry would react. He and Draco may have been acting civilized to each other but that didn't mean that any grudges they held against each other had simply disappeared.

I hadn't told Harry that I had been staying at Malfoy Manor, again for the same reason that I didn't know how he would react. I had talked it over with Ginny, and it felt best that I told Harry first that I had been staying at the manor for the past few weeks. Afterwards, before telling Harry how I felt about Draco, I had to find out first how Draco felt about me. As I opened my mouth to speak, Ginny cut me off.

"Where is that wimp of a brother of mine?"

"Oh, right." Harry glanced at me before turning his attention back to his fascinating dish cloth. "He went back to your flat Hermione, to get his belongings."

"Well that's good." I panicked a little. I only hoped that Ron was thick enough not to notice I hadn't been living at my flat for some weeks and that a chunk of my clothes were missing, along with my toiletries.

"And there's something else," Harry continued. He wouldn't look at me. I wished he would have stopped fiddling with the dish cloth. It was very irritating.

"I'm here!" Ron's voice came from the other room. Ginny gave Harry an odd look before turning to greet Ron in the other room. Harry still wouldn't look at me and he followed his fiancé. I was confused and curious on what this "something else" was. I shrugged my shoulders and followed.

I wasn't sure if I was ready to face Ron after our nasty break up, but nothing would have prepared me for this.

Next to Ron stood the most gorgeous woman I had ever seen. She was about my age, twenty five or so, I was guessing about twenty three. She the perfect hour glass figure any woman would die for and any guy would soil his pants for. Her blond hair was a mass of beautiful ringlets that fell graciously around her slender shoulders. She had full red lips that were curved into a flirtatious smile, revealing a pair of brilliant white teeth. Her eyes were a sparkling sky blue and had a perfectly straight and slender nose. But what caught my attention the most were her large voluptuous breasts that were practically popping out of her shirt, begging for freedom.

She wore a one-piece black lace trim cat suit. It was a halter top with a cut-out around her naval and a plunging neckline. It had a red belt attached that matched the lacing that went around the breast line and the outline of the shirt along with her stilettos. The pants part of the suit seemed a bit too tight, for I could see perfectly the outline of her more private, female reproductive area. She had a pear drop dangling chandelier naval ring and a tattoo around her belly button of a vine of leaves and a butterfly.

Merlin, it was the middle of winter! I started to wonder if I should have traded in my woolly red sweater and jeans for a mini skirt and skimpy tank top. I was just glad she was wearing a decent length coat.

"This is Scarlett," Ron was practically beaming. "Scarlett darling, this is my sister Ginny and I don't need to introduce Harry again." I waited for my introduction. Scarlett smiled at me and opened her mouth to say something, but Ron quickly cut her off. "Oh, you don't need to talk to her honey, she's no one important."

It took all the forces I had not to go over to him and hex the living daylights out of him. Screw the hexing, I wanted to rip his tongue out and shove it down his throat. I was throwing daggers at him with my eyes. I couldn't stand being in the same room with him any longer and stormed off to the kitchen.

I needed something to pound on, so I drained some potatoes that Ginny was boiling into a strainer and then into a bowl and went to search for the potato masher. Harry walked into the kitchen and once again picked up the infernal dish cloth.

"Are you ok Hermione?" I glared at him.

"No, I'm not fucking ok. What's he playing at? Does he think he's being clever by ignoring me completely? He's acting extremely childish!"

"See, that's why I wanted to warn you about Scarlett-"

"Do you actually think I'm pissed because he brought her? Fuck no!" I was pacing around the kitchen now, trying to cool off. It wasn't helping. "I'm pissed because he's ignoring me! Treating me like the scum off his shoe! No one important am I? Well fuck him!"

"Hermione, I know he's being a git, but-"

"But what Harry? Don't defend him! I know he's your mate and all but that doesn't mean you have to justify his arrogance! I don't care that he has a gorgeous new girlfriend, he probably paid her to be with him anyways, but why does he have to be so fucking immature and find it so difficult to move on! I'm just happy I had the decency to move on properly and not pick up some hooker off the street!" He eyed me curiously.

"You're seeing someone?"

Shit.

The bubble of anger that was surrounding me deflated. I opened my mouth to say something, but as always, no words came out. The potatoes seemed much more interesting at that moment, so I started mashing them quite slowly.

"I'm glad for you Hermione, honestly." Harry came over to me and placed a hand on my shoulder. "Tell me about him." I looked up at him, and I could see he was honestly asking me to talk to him about _him._

"Well, I'm not exactly seeing him. I just like him," I looked away from Harry and back to the potatoes. "A lot."

"And what about him?"

"Oh, well, I'm not sure if he likes me yet. But I think he might."

"That's great Hermione really." We were silent for a minute or so until I put down the potato masher.

"Harry, can I ask you something?" He nodded.

"You only care about my happiness right?" He chuckled slightly.

"Of course Hermione, I care about you a lot and whatever makes you happy, why do you ask?" I took a deep breath and looked at Harry straight in the eye.

"It's Draco."

Harry's expression changed instantly the moment he interpreted what I had just said. I jumped and gave a small yelp. Harry had slammed his fist onto the kitchen counter, causing the bowl of potatoes to shake and almost fall to the floor.

"You can't be serious Hermione. Tell me this is a joke." His voice remained at a normal level, although his tone was just as frightening as his facial expression. He was red in the face and practically shaking from anger. He was positively fuming.

"Harry, I-"

"Do you realize what you just said? You can't be fucking serious!" He was losing his control over his voice level.

"What's your problem? You just said-"

"My problem is that you fancy Malfoy! Of all people it had to be Malfoy!"

"But Harry, he's changed. He's not the same Draco we knew back in school, please try to relax!"

"Oh but I am relaxed Hermione! See?" he took the bowl of potatoes and mashed them furiously.

"That doesn't really look like you're relaxed, they're called mashed potatoes, not massacred."

"You have no idea who Malfoy is Hermione! You don't understand what you're getting yourself into!"

"Well then why don't you explain it to me? What is it about Draco that I'm so ignorant about? Educate me Harry, please." I was getting irritated. Harry seemed to back down at this, lost for words. I sighed and shook my head.

"It's not me who doesn't understand Harry, it's you. You're acting just like Ron. Why do you have to keep holding a grudge against Draco? Can't we just all be adults about this?" Harry simply shook his head.

"No Hermione, you don't understand what this means. Malfoy isn't who you think he is. He can't be trusted."

"How do you know? You don't even know him!" My eyes burnt with the stubborn tears that wanted release. Harry pinched the bridge of his nose, and closed his eyes.

"Oh, what a mess I've made. What have I done?"

"What? What are you talking about?"

"Hermione," he opened his eyes and stared at me intensely. "I forbid you from seeing Draco. It's not safe. You are relieved of your assignment. You'll never have to see him again."

"Oh, fuck you! You can't tell me what I can and cannot do!"

"What's going on in here? We can hear you guys yelling from the other room," Ginny entered the kitchen, looking concerned as she glanced from Harry to me and back again.

"Hermione," Harry continued, ignoring Ginny. "You can't see Malfoy. You don't know what you're getting yourself into, please try to understand!" The tears were now streaming down my face.

"You said you only cared for my happiness Harry,"

"Yes, and trust me, you're not going to be happy. Please Hermione-"

"No Harry, fuck you! If I want to be with Draco, you can't stop me." I looked over at Ginny. "I'm sorry Ginny, I have to go." She opened her mouth to say something, but I didn't give her a chance. I ran out of the kitchen, grabbed my coat and purse and headed towards the door.

Ron and Scarlett were sitting in the living area I stopped the moment I saw them. I didn't even glance at Ron but walked up to Scarlett and offered my hand. She seemed confused at first but took it anyways and shook it.

"It was lovely to meet you Scarlett, I'm Hermione Granger. I only hope that you know what you're getting yourself into and won't need to be told otherwise." I walked out the door and apparated back to the manor.



I stormed through the main doors of Malfoy Manor, shaking the snow off my coat and boots as I went. I walked to the study, in hopes that I would find Draco there. I needed someone to talk to. I needed to cool off and personally, I didn't want to go jump face first into the snow. I wanted Draco to comfort me, much like the times he comforted me after my break up with Ron. I knocked on the study door and peaked in. He wasn't there.

I sighed slightly in disappointment, and continued sluggishly to my bedroom. The stairs leading to the top floor seemed almost endless. Finally, I reached the outside of my room, feeling ready to collapse onto my luxurious bed. I paused outside the closed door of my room, my hand resting on the knob. I looked down the hallway towards Draco's room. I bit my lip and walked over to his closed door. I hesitated before knocking on the tall oak doors. I took a long breath and knocked.

Silence.

I knocked again but still no answer. I opened the doors and peaked inside. The room was just as magnificent as I remembered the first time I had seen it. And there was no Draco. I entered the room, closing the door behind me, listening for sounds from the bathroom, or the closet, or anywhere really.

He wasn't there.

Where could he have gone? He had told me that he had no matters to attend to today. But then again, since I was going to have dinner with my beloved friends, he probably didn't expect me home this early.

Still, I wondered where he had gone off to. Perhaps he had stayed in muggle London a little longer? Maybe he stopped for a drink and then went to Diagon Alley? What if he was on a date?

No, I didn't want to think of him being with another woman. But then again, it wasn't as if we were an official "item" or anything. I felt like a schoolgirl again, having a silly little crush. I sighed and sat down on his bed, or rather sank into the comfortable mattress.

I picked up one of the pillows and hugged it, taking in its scent. Draco's scent was embedded within the pillow and I felt as if he was there with me.

I really had to get a grip of myself or else I was going to find myself snogging the pillows that smelt like Draco.

I held the pillow tight, remembering the fight I had just had with Harry. What a mess, what have I done, he said. What in bloody hell was he talking about? I fought with my best friend over Draco.

I only hoped that he was worth it.

With that thought in mind, I lay down and cried, soaking Draco's pillows with my hot and salty tears.

**A/N**: Voila! Aw poor Hermione. Ron's a bitch and Harry seems to be having a bit of a freak out. Hope this chapter was alright...thanks to everyone who reviewed and such, you guys are the bestest ) don't forget to review this one too! Much love!!

-Necia xoxo


	12. Sweet and Bitter

**Disclaimer: **Sigh. I don't own anything ok? Just the story. Don't sue my sorry little arse.

**Chapter Twelve – Sweet and Bitter**

"Hermione," my angel called out. I opened my eyes and saw the faint glow of his beautiful face. I smiled slightly, reaching out to touch him and cupped his face in my hand. His skin was cold and I realized that he was stroking my hair. He had the most stunning eyes and his lips were so tempting. I tried to bring him closer to me, so that I could kiss him but then he started chuckling.

"You even want me in your dreams, _Hermione_."

It was then that it occurred to me that I was awake. Damn.

I blinked a couple of times, bringing my vision into focus and saw Draco sitting on the bed next to me. He still had his coat on, and his face was still rosy from the weather. The snowflakes in his hair were just beginning to melt away. I assumed that he had just arrived. I hoisted myself up with my elbows and hugged my knees.

"You're early," he continued. "I was expecting you later this evening." I merely shrugged. He frowned and stood from the bed, shaking off the snow and removing his coat.

"Where did you go?" I asked and immediately regretted asking. It wasn't any of my business really where he had gone. He went to sit on a chair and removed his shoes. He didn't look up at me while he answered.

"I had a meeting to attend, sort of a last minute thing." I nodded, but doubted that he had seen me do so. "What about you? I thought you were having dinner with your mates." I was silent for a minute, perhaps longer before I decided to answer. This time it was me who didn't look at Draco when I answered.

"I left early. Ron was being a complete moron and I had an argument with Harry."

"I see," Draco stood from the chair and disappeared into his closet. He emerged a minute or so later. "What did you and Harry argue about?" I rested my chin on my knees and looked up at him. He was wearing a pair of dark jeans and was in the process of putting on a green sweater. He pulled the sweater down, rolled his sleeves up, and ran his hand threw his hair. As he did so, I saw a glimpse of the Dark Mark on his forearm. I still hadn't answered him. He frowned again and came to sit next to me on the bed. He rubbed my back and stroked my hair before kissing the top of my head.

"Don't worry he'll get over it, whatever it was that you argued about. Potter cares about you a lot. Probably more than you imagine. He'll probably come looking for you tomorrow."

"But Harry doesn't know I'm here, unless you or Ginny told him."

"Yes well, if he goes looking for you at your flat, he's obviously going to see you haven't been there in a few weeks and will probably come here looking for you." I shrugged again. He bit his lip, making me forget for a moment why I was upset. I was so tempted to tell Draco that I was falling in love with him and wanted to feel his lips on mine. That I wanted him to take me right then and there. He smiled at me slightly, almost if he had read my mind. The smile faded as quickly as it came and was replaced with a look of sadness which he quickly masked with a face of stone, completely expressionless.

"I'm guessing you've been in here since you arrived?" he asked standing up again. I nodded. He offered me his hand. "I need to show you something." He had offered me his left hand, once again making his tattoo visible. I stared at it for a moment, and Harry's words came to mind.

_He can't be trusted. _

Draco shifted uncomfortably for a moment and I shook my head to free my thoughts of Harry and took his hand. He led me out of the room and back to my room, stopping outside my door. He let go of my hand and went to stand behind me and placed his hands over my eyes.

"Um, what are you doing?" The contact of skin sent shivers down my spine. It might have also been the fact that his hands were still quite cold.

"Trust me. Open the door." I searched for the door handle and turned it, walking into my room blind as a bat. But I could care less because I could feel Draco's breath on the back of my neck. We stopped at some point. He nuzzled my neck and whispered softly into my ear. "I hope you like it."

I felt a bit dizzy from being so close to him that I didn't quite open my eyes the moment he took away his hands. When I did, I saw that we were standing in my closet. The dress I had seen earlier that day, was now hanging elegantly in front of me. I gasped slightly and turned to face Draco.

"Do you like it?" I wanted to jump onto him and kiss him all over.

"Draco, I couldn't possibly-"

"Nonsense," he walked over the dress and held it up for me to see. "It's a gift from me to you. It would be very rude and uncouth of you if you didn't accept it." He smirked at me.

"Rude and uncouth mean the same thing,"

"Whatever. Don't you like it? I figured you could wear to the ball. Think of it as an early Christmas present. Besides, I think it would look better on you rather than me." He bit his lip slightly. "Why don't you try it on? Maybe you'll like it better once you see it on you." He handed me the dress and sat down on a pink foot stool that was in the closet and folded his arms. I arched an eyebrow at him.

"Oh, right. I guess I should leave you alone to change then?" he smirked and left, closing the closet door behind him. I stared at the dress in my hands and gave a small giddy jump and quiet cry of joy. I changed quickly and slipped into the dress, spinning around in it. I looked at myself in the mirror that was hanging on the wall. It was absolutely gorgeous.

I emerged from the closet to find Draco examining himself in my dresser mirror. He started at me for a moment, opening and closing his mouth a couple of times before he simply smiled.

"What do you think?" I asked, twirling around. I faced him again and he just smiled and nodded. I walked over to him, wrapping my arms around his neck. "Thank you Draco, I love it." I whispered into his ear. He just stood there for a moment, reminding me of a similar incident some months earlier. After a few seconds he wrapped his arms around my waist, placing his one hand on the exposed skin on my back. I moved away slightly and gave him a kiss on the cheek before looking at him in the face.

He was biting his lip and it seemed that he was having some sort of inner conflict with himself. He wasn't looking at me. I cupped his face in my hands, locking our eyes.

"Draco? Is something wrong?" I saw something in eyes but I couldn't quite name it. He was still biting his lip. I traced the outline of his lips with my thumb, sending electric shocks throughout my body. "You can tell me." He stared deeply into my eyes and took my face into his hands, bringing it closer to his. Then, he gently pressed his lips against mine.

Aha! Victory is mine!

He moved one hand to the small of my back and the other behind my head, deepening the kiss. I was in complete ecstasy. He traced my lips with his tongue, asking for entry which, of course, I undoubtedly gave him. I ran my fingers through his hair, pulling him closer to me as we explored each other's mouths. He tasted so sweet yet so bitter at the same time but I loved it just the same. It was sheer bliss, taking a taste of this forbidden fruit that was Draco Malfoy.

There was a sort of fierceness and urgency in the kiss. I moaned slightly at the back of my throat. We had been moving closer and closer to the bed and were only inches away when Draco suddenly froze. He went rigid and pulled away from me, walking over to my dresser. His lips were red and swollen as were mine and we were both breathing quite hard.

"What's wrong?" I asked, my heart still pounding away at my chest. Draco looked at me, biting his now swollen lips once more. He seemed frustrated but sighed slightly before walking over to me. He took my hand in his and kissed it before placing a small tender kiss on my lips.

"I'm sorry Hermione." He stared intensely into my eyes for a moment, while I stared back, searching those silver eyes for some sort of answer. He turned and walked out of the room while I stood there and watched him go.

What in bloody hell just happened?

I pulled up the dress and walked out the room, following him. The door to his bedroom chamber was open and I stood outside the frame. I spotted him staring out one of the windows, his back towards me with his head resting on one arm against the window and the other up against the wall. I opened my mouth to say something, to demand an explanation but no words came out. He pounded the wall with his fist, making me jump slightly in surprise.

"Goddammit," I heard him say. Goddamn what? He pounded the wall again, repeatedly. I jumped every time. I figured this was not the time to ask him what was wrong. I let him be as I returned back to my room and was left to ponder. What a day this had been.



Draco and I hadn't talked about the kissing incident since the day he had given me the dress. Some time had passed since then and now we were only a week away from Christmas and the ball. Draco had planned the ball for Christmas Eve and had sent out invitations in this week. He had given me a handful of invitations, telling me to invite whoever I wished.

I still hadn't talked to Harry since our argument, and Ginny never mentioned anything of the sort in her letters. She did mention Ron's new girlfriend, Scarlett, saying that she was quite nice and was _always_ at the house whenever Ron came around. And just like the first time we saw her, she continued to wear promiscuous outfits. Ginny said that perhaps it was just that Scarlett was _very_ comfortable with herself and good for her. That's nice. Doesn't mean the whole world has to see it.

Unlike what Draco had predicted, Harry never did come looking for me that one day, or the next. I did send him an invitation. Well, I wrote his name next to Ginny's anyhow. As for Ron, well one of us had to act maturely. I invited some people that I worked with, some good friends I had made over the years. After I had sent the owl with the invitations on its way, I made my way downstairs to search for Draco to tell him who I had invited.

As I walked down the hall, I heard voices from down the stairs. I peaked around the corner and saw Draco talking with Harry at the bottom of the stairs. I could just make out what they were saying. It wasn't hard really, both of them were practically yelling.

"This wasn't supposed to happen! How could you let this happen?"

"What do you want me to do? Tell her to forget about me? Make up some lie that I don't care about her?"

"Yes! If that's what it takes,"

"I'm not going to lie to her Potter,"

"You already have! If you care about her so much, you'd put an end to this now before it gets any worse!"

"If you care about her, you'd let her be happy. Have you even considered that she would be happy with me Potter?"

"Yes, if it didn't mean that she would die for it." Draco lifted his arm at this point, as if he was going to punch Harry, but brought it back to his own mouth instead.

"She's not going to die. I wouldn't let anything bad happen to her." Draco's voiced had calmed.

"It's too late for that. But it's not too late to end this before it gets too far." Harry turned to leave as I stepped into view. He stopped the moment he saw me and turned back to Draco. "What's this?"

"Hello Harry," I said making my way down the stairs. Harry looked at me curiously before looking to Draco once more.

"Care to explain?" Harry asked.

"I can answer that," I continued standing between Draco and Harry. "I was assigned to watch Draco, no? He kindly offered to get me out the house without forgetting about my job so here I am, doing my job."

"This is ridiculous Hermione; I told you that you can't be with Malfoy."

"And I told you, you're not one to tell me what I can and cannot do. And technically, I'm not with Draco, I'm just staying at the house where he just so happens to live." I smiled sweetly at him. "Now, can one of you kindly explain to me, what in bloody hell you were arguing about? Because honestly, I'm quite sick of not getting any explanations of what's going on." I looked at Draco when I said this. He stared at me for a moment, and soon found his shoes more interesting to look at.

"Malfoy's a Death Eater Hermione, we can't trust him."

"Oh Harry please, you don't even believe what you're saying. Why don't you learn to grow up?"

"Fine," Harry grunted in frustration. "Do what you want, I'm sick of trying to warn you, of trying to convince you this," he waved his finger to Draco and myself and back again. "Isn't going to work. But neither of you is giving into reason! I just hope that I'm wrong and no one ends up getting hurt as a result all this mess." He turned to leave, glancing back once more to Draco and me, shaking his head before turning back towards the exit.

After we heard the front door close, I turned to Draco, taking his hands in mine.

"Draco please, can you tell me what's going on? Why is Harry acting like this?" Draco stared into my eyes and sighed.

"He's just mental." With that, he kissed my forehead and walked back up the stairs to his room.

That's it? Why won't anyone just give me a fucking explanation? Argh!

**A/N: **Aw, what could be wrong with Draco? And what the hell is up with Harry? You'll find out...eventually teehee. Anyways, I'm very excited for the upcoming chapter (possibly chapters...I haven't decided whether I'll divide what happens next into two chapters) and I hope you will all enjoy it! (I know I will). Thanks to everyone who reviewed you guys are totally awesome!! Don't forget to review this chapter too!

-Necia xoxo


	13. First Taste of the Green Apple

**Disclaimer: **Nothing is mine; expect the story blah blah blah.

**Chapter Thirteen – First Taste of the Green Apple**

**WARNING: THIS CHAPTER CONTAINS SEXUAL CONTENT! Mature rating people (duh). **

_Christmas Eve_

The manor was in complete frenzy. I attempted to help the house elves with the decorations but they refused to let me do anything. I suspected that Draco ordered them not to let me help. Not that I wouldn't do a good job at decorating, but because he didn't like me doing any work around the manor. I attempted to a couple of times, like the way he did while he was staying at my flat, but he would make sure I occupied myself with something else, a book mostly. Nonetheless, the ballroom was turning out magnificently in a gorgeous royal blue and silver decor.

I hadn't seen much of Draco on this day. He was most likely preoccupied with matters concerning the ball and last minute business issues. Funny, I never did ask Draco what this "family business" was about. For most of the day, since I wasn't allowed to help with anything, I sat around reading my books. When the guests were due to arrive in a couple of hours, I decided to go get ready. When I had gotten up this morning, I found a small bag of rose petals to use for baths from Draco. I thought it would make him happy to use them so he could see I appreciated his gifts.

As I soaked in my rose petal bath, I thought about the last few days. I never did ask Draco again for an explanation of what Harry's confrontation was about. I figured that if no one was going to tell me what was going on when I asked, someone would come to me without me asking.

Apparently that wasn't the case. Although curiosity was killing me to know what both Harry and Draco were hiding, I knew it was a waste of time if I continued to pester them for answers. I was starting to assume that it wasn't that important. I shook my head. Those thoughts weren't very relaxing.

I thought about the kiss Draco and I had shared the other day. Not so much the part where he went all rigid and left me standing there, just when things were getting good. But the actual kiss. It was a different kiss. It was neither stolen or given without warning; it was shared. I yearned to kiss him again. I wanted to feel his soft lips on mine again, his hands on my body; I wanted more than just a kiss. How I longed for him.



The guests were starting to arrive, I must have taken longer in the bath than I had expected. I could hear Christmas music coming from the ballroom and the doorbell going every few minutes. If I couldn't help with the decorations, I supposed I could help with greeting the guests alongside Draco. I was in the process of adding some finishing touches to my hair when there was a knock on my door.

"Come in," I pulled back my loose curls into an elegant ponytail and clipped a gem studded barrette on either side.

"Wow Hermione! You look fantastic!" I turned to see Ginny's head popping through the doorway. I smiled at her as she walked in, looking around the bedroom. She looked beautiful in a green silk dress with red flowers. I loved her shoes the most, a pair of gem studded green sandals. Scarlett followed behind her, smiling coyly at me. As I had suspected, she was wearing quite an interesting dress. The colour was a lovely baby pink, but there wasn't much left to the imagination. It was a tight fitting dress, from the waist down anyhow. The back was completely bare and it had a plunging loose neckline which reached down to her waist. I could see half of her breasts.

So Ron showed up. I was almost certain he would have thrown out the invitation the moment he opened it. Well, I assumed he showed, I don't think he would have just sent his girlfriend over. Same goes with Harry, I wondered if he would show up or just send Ginny with a hello. Ginny came over to me and embraced me in a crushing hug.

"Draco said we could come up, he looks drop dead _gorgeous_ Hermione. Suits suit him." Ginny continued as she winked at me. "I brought Scarlett with me, she wanted to say hello."

"Hello," Scarlett said, flashing me her brilliant white teeth. She had a sort of melodic voice, something sweet and soft. I had never met a woman quite like her. She was a beautiful and seemingly sweet woman, with a skanky taste in clothes.

"Hello, I'm glad you could both make it, did Harry and Ron come?" I asked, still wondering if they had actually decided to show.

"Why yes," Scarlett answered. "They're downstairs. They were chatting with, Draco was his name?" She looked over to Ginny who nodded.

"I see."

"Ahem, yes well. Are you all done Hermione? I really want to go see what this party is all about." Ginny said, heading over to the door. I laughed softly as Scarlett and I followed.

"I love your dress Hermione," Scarlett piped up as we walked down the stairs. "It is simply marvellous!"

"Thank you, it was a gift," I looked over to her. "That colour suits you." She beamed.

Harry and Ron weren't in the main foyer when we arrived, I figured they had either left or Draco had led them to the ballroom. I searched for Draco, looking over to the main entrance. I wanted to see if Ginny was right about him looking gorgeous. I couldn't find him anywhere and just simply led Ginny and Scarlett to the ballroom.

It looked absolutely amazing. There were dozens of Christmas trees decorated in blue and silver. The decorations were enchanted and danced around, twirling and jumping from branch to branch. A choir and band were off to a corner, singing and playing holiday music. Much like Hogwarts, the ceiling was enchanted to make it seem like the weather outside. It appeared to be snowing within the ballroom. There were large tables at opposite ends of the room full of food and drinks which is where I spotted Ron. Where else? I searched the room for a head of bleach blond hair, which was nowhere to be found. I heard the doorbell ring and excused myself from Ginny and Scarlett.

I hiked up my dress and sort of scuffled towards the main entrance. Running and high heels don't mix. As I got closer, I could hear his sweet voice. My heart skipped a beat. I was acting as if I hadn't seen him in ages. He came into view, guiding a young couple who I recognized from the ministry. They were chuckling as they approached me and stopped to say hello. I greeted them warmly.

"Please, if you just keep walking down this hall, you will reach the ballroom. I hope you enjoy your evening," Draco said ever so politely pointing them in the right direction. He smiled at the couple who thanked him and continued onwards. I looked at him. Ginny was not lying, of that I was certain. He wore a three-piece black suit. Black pants, jacket, vest, a deep red silk shirt, and a black and red striped tie. Yummy. He smirked at me.

"You like?" he asked, turning around so I could see him from all angles.

"Not bad," I replied, crossing my arms.

"Well, you look and smell simply divine," He came over to me and wrapped his arms around my waist and buried his face in my neck. The feel of his breath on my neck made me shiver. "I see that you used the rose petals."

"Yes, thank you." I couldn't manage to say anything else. He kissed the top of my head and offered me his arm.

"Shall we?" I nodded as I looped my arm through his and he led the way back to the ballroom.



The evening had been amazing, simply put. I had never enjoyed myself so much as I had that night. I couldn't keep my eyes off Draco the entire evening, and I found that he was in the same situation. The food had been amazing and people actually danced. I always found it frustrating when I would go to parties and no one would dance. It wasn't simply jolly good Christmas music the entire evening either. There was a bit of everything for different tastes. As the evening progressed, I got to know Scarlett a little better. It seemed that she really wanted me to like her.

At one point while Ginny, Scarlett, and I were dancing, I noticed Scarlett had given a man a sort of business card.

"Even on my days off I'm working, don't you hate that?" Scarlett asked when the man had walked away, quite pleased with himself it seemed.

"Yes, I had someone I know from work come up to me earlier and ask me to help them with a report they had to write," I replied, eyeing Draco smirking at me from the corner of my eye.

"Where do you work Scarlett? I never did ask." Ginny said.

"Oh, here I'll give both of you a card," she took out a metallic black cardholder and handed us each a light pink card with black lettering. I read it and felt the colour in my cheeks rise.

Scarlett

HIgh Class Working Call Girl

Sexxx Kitten Co.

"Oh my," Ginny said, blushing just as much as I had. It made sense really, how else could have Ron scored a woman as beautiful and delightful as Scarlett? I had found throughout the evening that Scarlett was quite pleasant to be around. All the men would turn their heads when she walked by. It might have been the fact that she was wearing a revealing dress and probably no knickers, but everyone stared nonetheless. She was a happy person and smiled at everyone and was very polite.

"Yes, it's better than my previous job anyways. I was what I guess you could call a gold digger. My motto would be, like a hooker only smarter." She giggled at this. Ginny and I gave a sort of nervous chuckle.

"So, is this how you and Ron met?" I asked, not knowing how to word it without sounding judgemental of what she did for a living. Don't get me wrong, the fact that Scarlett was a high class prostitute didn't bother me as much as I would have thought. I liked Scarlett.

"Yes actually. He called on me a quite a few times over this year. After a while, he told me that he wanted to be more than just business partners as he called it and so we started dating and now we're an official item I guess you can say."

"And, no offence, he's ok with what you do for a living?" Ginny asked. Scarlett nodded.

"He's very understanding." I restrained a snort from escaping. Then it hit me.

"You mentioned that he had called upon you a few times over _this _year?" She nodded again.

"I think our first meeting was sometime in March."Ginny glanced over at me, shifting uncomfortably. I was still with Ron at that point.

Oh, well that's lovely.

I wasn't angry really. It's not like I was missing out on much anyways. The thought that Ron had cheated on me for quite some time didn't bother me. I suppose if I had found out when we were still dating, I would have reacted differently. I guess I didn't really care about him as much as I thought. There was no point in getting angry anyways. We had broken up months ago and it wasn't as if our relationship was on the greatest terms for quite some time. So I shrugged it off. I looked over at Draco. He caught my eye and smiled which I graciously returned.

I actually did get to dance with Draco like I wanted. I saw him excuse himself from some guests at one point and walk over to me. I felt myself blush as he came over to where Ginny, Scarlett, and I were standing by the punch. He asked for me to dance with him, which of course I accepted. Ginny winked at me when I looked back.

Draco waved to the band to play a song as he led me to the middle of the dance floor. He took my right hand in his and snaked his other around my waist. He pulled me closer to him, so close that I could breathe in his cologne.

He didn't say anything, but twirled me around and around the floor, holding me so closely that I wished he would just rip off my dress and take me right there. I could feel a pulsing bulge growing against my leg. The excitement was mutual. I felt extremely hot and my head felt sort of fuzzy. I was so aroused that if it wasn't for the applause, announcing that the song had ended and bringing me back to earth, I would have pounced on him.

We were both breathing heavily, and hadn't spoken a word throughout the whole dance. Words weren't necessary. He smiled at me, licking his lips as he did. He led me back to Ginny and Scarlett, where he kissed my hand, thanked me for the dance and went back to some guests.

"You two make a lovely couple," Scarlett said handing me some punch. "How long have you been married?" I choked a little.

"Oh," I coughed. "No, no. We're not married."

"Oh ok, engaged then?" I shook my head. "Dating?"

"No, we're just friends."

"Oh. Well, there seems to be a lot of sexual tension between the two of you." I choked again on my punch. Ginny started laughing nervously.

"Scarlett, do you want to come with me to look at the trees? They look simply fascinating." Ginny linked her arm with Scarlett and led her off to one of the Christmas trees. I coughed for a bit longer until I felt a hand on my shoulder. I turned and came face to face with a pair of emerald eyes.

"Hello Hermione, you look lovely," Harry said, putting his hands inside his pant pockets. I was still coughing slightly, so I simply nodded. He eyed me curiously and patted my back. "You ok?" I nodded.

"That was quite a dance you had there with Malfoy," he continued, shifting his eyes to something more interesting. Apparently the punch bowl is very interesting to look at. "I'm sure everyone here can tell that there's some sort of connection between the two of you, if they had been watching you all night like I have."

Creepy. I felt like I was being stalked. He sighed.

"Hermione, I'm sorry for acting like such a git before. It's true that I said that I only cared for your happiness and if being with Draco makes you happy, I'll accept that."

What the hell?

"Yes well, even if you didn't accept it, I still would have tried to be more than just friends with Draco."

"I know."

"So why the change of heart?"

"Because I care about you and I don't want you to be angry with me anymore. And I know how Draco feels about you. Everyone can. I know that he'll take good care of you."

Interesting.

"I'm sorry Hermione, can you forgive me?" he opened his arms, asking for a hug. I bit my lip, glancing over at Draco. He was laughing with a group of people. So gorgeous. I looked back at Harry and smiled, hugging him. "But if he ever does anything to harm you, I swear that I'll kick his sorry little arse." I simply smiled into his shoulder.



Soon after, the guests began to leave. Ron did not speak me the entire night. Not even to say goodbye, even though he, Harry, Ginny, and Scarlett were the last to leave. Prat.

After everyone had left, I plopped down on one of the couches in front of the fireplace in the living area. Draco followed me, removing his tie, vest, and suit jacket and placing them on a chair and joining me on the couch. My feet had been dangling off the edge of the couch so he picked them up, removed my shoes, and started massaging them. Ah, what a relief.

We chatted for a while, and I told him about Scarlett. He didn't seem surprised. I didn't mention what Harry had said just yet. We hadn't said anything about "us".

"I know I said this already, but you looked absolutely stunning tonight Hermione," Draco said, resting his head back on the couch and closing his eyes, his hands still massaging my aching feet. I smiled.

"Thank you, you didn't look too shabby yourself," I too closed my eyes.

"That dance we had was quite the, hmm, what word am I looking for?" I opened my eyes and lifted my head to see him. He looked so relaxed sitting across from me, his head rested back, closed eyes, and hair fallen freely around his face.

"I don't know, sexy? Exhilarating? You seemed pretty excited, if you know what I mean." A smirk played on his lips as he opened his eyes and turned his head to face me. His hair was slightly covering his face so he looked at me through it, piercing me with his silver eyes.

"Yes, I admit it. I was aroused. Turned on, horny, whatever you want to call it. But how could I not be?" I blushed as he licked his lips. "Are you going to tell me that you didn't feel the same way?" He stared at me with teasing eyes.

"No, we were just dancing." He laughed quietly.

"You're a terrible liar."

"I'm not lying."

"So you weren't at all aroused?"

"That's right."

"You never had naughty thoughts about me while we were dancing?"

"Not once."

"So you mean to tell me that you don't desire me at all?"

"Correct." Sigh, such lies. An evil grin appeared on Draco's lips. "Why are you looking at me like that?"He got up abruptly and crossed his arms over his chest, towering over me. I sat up.

"So, if I were to take you up to my bed and tell you how much I wanted to shag you...correction, make love to you, you would just blow me off? No pun intended of course." I rolled my eyes. "That's all I needed." I opened my mouth to say something, but before I knew what just happened, Draco had picked me up and thrown me over his shoulder and was heading for the stairs.

"What are you doing? Draco, put me down. Seriously, Draco!" he wasn't answering me so I started kicking my legs and pounding on his back. He slapped my bum, making me jump.

"Hey now, none of that while we're going up the stairs, do you want to kill us both?" I couldn't help but smile. "See? If you cooperate, this isn't so bad is it?" he tapped my bum a couple of times. At the top of the stairs I started to kick and pound on his back again, smiling all the while.

"I'll start running," he continued, slapping my bum once more. I giggled and continued to "protest" so he started to run. I was laughing out loud by the time we reached his bedroom. He threw me onto the bed and I continued to laugh as he towered over me.

My laughing quieted down and I stared up at him. He kneeled over top of me on the bed. Neither of us said anything. My knees were bent and my dress had fallen in between my legs, exposing my legs. He parted my legs with his hand, and lay over top of me. He stared into my eyes for a moment, caressing the side of my face with his hand, his hair tickling my nose.

With his other hand, he caressed one of my legs and hiked it over his hip. I breathed inward slightly. He licked his lips and leaned in for a kiss. It was a tender kiss, and he moved on to kiss the outline of my jaw, behind me ear, and finally up and down my neck as he caressed my leg. I moaned at the back of my throat. I could feel his now growing bulge against the inside of my thigh.

"Are you sure you still don't desire me?" he whispered, continuing to kiss my neck. I sighed deeply in response as I interlaced my fingers through his silky hair, my hips moving slightly underneath him. I felt him smile in between kisses. I pushed my hips upwards slightly, feeling his manhood grow harder in response. I pulled his face from my neck and pressed my lips against his, kissing him feverishly, moaning slightly into his mouth.

His breathing quickened, as he too moaned at the back of his throat. His hand trailed up my leg and to my inner thigh. I felt the contact of his fingers against my knickers, causing me to moan once more.

But then he stopped and gasped. He stared into my eyes, both of us breathing heavily. A pained expression loomed over his beautiful face.

"What's wrong?" I asked. "Oh right, a contraceptive spell. Where's your wand?" Draco continued to breathe heavily, slowly returning to a steady pace. He placed his forehead on mine and closed his eyes. A minute or two later, he opened them once more.

"I'm sorry Hermione," he lifted himself off of me and off the bed. He walked over to his dresser, leaning against it. "We can't do this."

You have got to be kidding me.

"What? Why not?" he gave a small smile at this, but it didn't last long. He just stared at me, not knowing what to say next. Anger overcame me. I rose abruptly from the bed.

"I don't understand you Draco. Do you like me or not?" I paced back and forth, waving my hands around in frustration.

"I adore you Hermione." I walked over to him and cupped his face in my hands, looking deeply into his eyes.

"Then why can't we be together? You've done this twice now, getting me all excited and then stopping just when it starts to get interesting." He smiled again.

"So you do get excited."

"Of course I do."

"I told you were you a terrible liar."

"This isn't a time to joke around Draco."

"Sorry."

"Tell me Draco, please. Why won't you let us be together? It's pretty obvious that's what both of us want." I was still holding his face in my hands. He just stared at me for a moment.

"We can't Hermione." I slapped him. He didn't even flinch although he knew it was coming. I walked away from him, stopping at the door.

"Oh, fuck you Draco! I'm so tired of this! I can't believe after all this time, now is the time that Draco Malfoy starts to listen to what Harry Potter says. What kind of man does that make you?" I slammed his door and slammed my own once I reached my room.

I paced back and forth, positively fuming. I pulled at my hair and cursed.

What a stupid ferret. How can he do this? Doesn't he want to be with me? Why do I care? He's always been a sorry little git. I should have never agreed to this stupid assignment. I shouldn't have let him win me over with pretty words and sensual caresses.

I probably paced for a good half an hour and still was pissed as hell. I hiked up my dress and headed back to Draco's room. He hadn't heard enough of what I had to say. Halfway to his room, I bumped into him.

I wasn't looking where I was going but rather fuming at the floor. Apparently he wasn't looking either. At least he didn't end up on the floor.

"Are you ok?" he asked, offering his hand which, I refused.

"That's none of your business," I snapped, rubbing my bum.

"Where were you going?"

"That's none of your business."

"Ok," he rolled his eyes slightly.

"What about you?" I asked hotly. He folded his hands behind his back.

"I was actually going to look for you."

"What for? I don't want to see you."

"Right," he raised a mocking eyebrow at me. How I loathe him. "Anyways, I was going to go look for you and apologize for not being the man you expected." A small tinge of regret hit me. Small though.

"It's not that I don't want to be with you Hermione, you can't seriously believe that."

"Well, I'm starting to. What other explanation can there be? Oh wait, I'm sorry. No one gives explanations around here anymore. At least not to me."

"Don't say that. I _want _to be with you Hermione. How can I make you understand that? But as much as I want to be with you, to make love you every night and let the whole world know how much I find myself falling in love with you, I can't. We can't." My bubble of anger that was hovering over me deflated.

"Does this have anything to do with what Harry said before?"

"Perhaps," he shifted uncomfortably as he leaned up against a wall. "I don't want anything to happen to you."

"Draco, Harry told me tonight that he wanted me to be happy and he knows that with you, I will be happy. He said that he knows you'll take care of me and nothing bad will happen. What could possibly happen to me?"

"He said that?" I nodded.

"Yes." He bit his lip, running a hand through his hair. He looked at me and I looked back pleadingly. He sighed and walked over to me, cupping my face in his hands.

"I know this is against my better judgement," he searched my eyes. "But fuck it." He kissed me once more and all the anger I was feeling sort of lifted and I lost myself in him. He smiled at me and took my hand, rushing back to his bedroom. He grabbed his wand, murmured a contraceptive spell and cupped my face once more.

"You sure about this?" he asked. I kissed him and backed away from him. I undid my dress and let it fall to my ankles. I was sure he could interpret that correctly. "No fun, I wanted to do that." He pouted slightly before smiling seductively at me. I got closer to him, wrapping my arms around his neck.

"I'm still wearing a bra and knickers," I said kissing the tip of his nose.

"Well that won't do, let's change that shall we?"

He laid me down on the bed once more, kissing me as he did. As he traced the outline of my lips with his tongue, he masterfully unhooked my bra, pulling it from underneath him and throwing it on the floor. He cupped one of my breasts, squeezing it as he did. He placed kisses alongside my jaw, down my neck, chest, until he reached the other breast.

Grazing my nipple between his teeth and teasing the other with his thumb, I moaned as I ran my fingers through his hair once more. After a couple of minutes, he switched to the other breast, and soon after moved lower, placing kisses as he did.

He spread my legs with his hands and starting at my feet, he placed kisses, slowly, up until he reached my inner thighs. He looked up at me at this point, removing my knickers as he did and tossed them away. He stopped and sat up for a moment, and I feared that again he would back out again. Instead he smiled.

"You're gorgeous Hermione," he said in a low voice. I smiled at him. "You have such a naughty smile. I love it." Ever so lightly, he ran his thumb up and down my clit, making me moan and gasp. I was absolutely drenched and wished he would just stop teasing me.

He was still fully clothed and he seemed to have read my mind. He stood up from the bed and kicked off his shoes, pulled off his socks, and began to unbutton shirt. I took his hands in mine and shook my head. I got off the bed and bent down slowly, kneeling in front of Draco. I undid his belt, sliding it from around his waist and tossed it away. The whole time, I kept my eyes locked on his. Slowly, I pulled his pants down to his ankles, kissing every inch of exposed skin as I did. He took a sharp intake of air when I placed a kiss through his boxer briefs and onto his bulging manhood. At last, when his pants were around his ankles, he stepped out of them and kicked them aside. I slid my hands up his inner thigh, stopping just short of erect penis. I reached around and grabbed his bum, placing a wet kiss on his penis as I made my up again. I kissed his lips as I unbuttoned the rest of his shirt, practically ripping it off as I explored every inch of skin with my hands. I ran my fingers along the edge of his boxer briefs, causing him to gasp slightly and then pulled them down. He kicked those off and embraced me in a passionate kiss, his hands exploring my body and mine his.

He picked me up gently laid me down again. He softened the kisses and caresses. His manhood pulsed against my inner thigh. He wrapped his fingers in my hair and I in his, leaning into me for a kiss. He brought his lips as close as he could without actually making contact to mine. He parted his lips then, letting a small breath escape. I leaned forward in efforts to get him to kiss me, but he held me back. My fingers tightened around his hair in response to the tease, and it was obvious to Draco at this point, that I could not take it any longer.

He pulled me in closer to him, crushing our lips in a passionate kiss. He parted my lips, allowing for his eager tongue to explore my mouth, and mine his. He rolled me onto my side and moved his hands from my hair to my back, moving slowly, eagerly. He reached my backside, grabbed my cheeks and smacked them lightly. I rolled him on top of me again and he parted my legs with his knee. His lips left mine and he locked our eyes. Slowly, yet eagerly, he began to enter me, never breaking our eye contact. I gasped and arched my hips upward when he filled me completely. My fingers let go of his hair and found their way to his back. He placed one hand on my leg and wrapped the other around my waist. He pressed our lips together once more before he began to thrust himself in and out of me again and again.

He started slowly at first, watching my face as he did. My hips moved simultaneously with his slow deep thrusts, making me moan as I dug my nails into his back. He quickened the pace steadily, thrusting deeper each time, making me moan and gasp louder and harder. He grunted and moaned and turned us over, so that I was on top of him. He wrapped a hand behind my neck and pulled me forward, crushing our lips together before he let go again and wrapped his hands around my waist.

I smiled seductively at him, moving my hips around in small circles, making him grunt in pleasure as he threw his head back and arched his back. I moved up and down his penis, slowly at first until the grip of his hands on my waist tightened, urging me to move faster. I bounced up and down, gasping and moaning. He moved simultaneously with me, deepening the thrusts, moving faster and faster. I moaned and gasped; I took a sharp intake of breath and moaned in complete ecstasy at reaching my orgasm, calling out his name as I did. Draco followed seconds after as I felt him cum deep inside of me.

We looked at each other in complete satisfaction. Our breathing was rapid but started to slow. He pulled me down closer to him, wrapping his arms around me. I could still feel him inside of me as he kissed the top of head. He rolled me off of him so that I would lay next him and covered our nakedness with the bed sheets as he held me protectively in his strong arms. I cuddled up against his smooth chest, taking in his scent. He traced the outline of my jaw with his finger and tipped my chin upwards. He stared at me with those silver eyes, smiling at me before finally placing a tender kiss on my swollen lips and before both of us drifted off into peaceful sleep.

**A/N:** -wipes sweat off brow- FYI I just spent the last 4 hours or so writing this chapter. That's right; I sat down and wrote this entire chapter in just one sitting. And all just for you! I HOPE YOU'RE HAPPY AND ENJOYED THIS CHAPTER VERY VERY MUCH!!!! Haha I was very excited to write this chapter, it is one of my favourites. A million thanks to my lovely Lady L. for your help on this chapter! I couldn't have done it without you. Love ya! Thanks to everyone who has reviewed and please don't forget to review this one too! Much love!

-Necia xoxo

P.S. List of favourite quotes from this chapter:

- "She was a beautiful and seemingly sweet woman, with a skanky taste in clothes."

- "So, if I were to take you up to my bed and tell you how much I wanted to shag you...correction, make love to you, you would just blow me off? No pun intended of course."

- "Well that won't do, let's change that shall we?"


	14. Secrets

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but this story.

**Chapter Fourteen – Secrets**

I desperately wanted to open my eyes but it felt as if someone had stapled them shut. I found myself again in the familiar dark room, staring into my angel's face. Up until that moment, my angel had no face but now I could clearly look into those silver eyes that I recognized and adored, staring back at me. I reached out for Draco but the scene suddenly changed.

I was staring at myself lying on the floor all bloody and beaten, barely alive. The image frightened me and I muffled a scream as my body changed shapes and became Draco. I snapped open my eyes and let out a frightened gasp. I sat up quickly, making myself slightly dizzy. My breathing had become heavy, desperate and I could feel that my heart was ready to jump out of my chest. I tried calming myself until I felt a cold hand lightly caress my back, making me jump once more and spin around.

"Hermione? Are you ok?" The sound of his voice had an instant calming effect and I quickly felt at ease the moment Draco's eyes met mine.

"Yes, I'm fine. I just had a bad dream." He smiled his crooked smile and opened his arms towards me. Without hesitating I laid back down and snuggled into his chest.

It was almost April. The snow was slowly beginning to melt and it constantly rained. But not even the weather could bring down my mood. I was with Draco Malfoy and I couldn't be happier. I still giggled every time that I, Hermione Granger said that phrase. I moved into the Malfoy Manor at the end of January, letting Ron keep our old flat. His and Scarlett's relationship appeared to be progressing and they too decided to move in together...about two days after I moved in with Draco. Was it simply a coincidence or some form of competition that I didn't quite understand?

Harry and Ginny's wedding was the next day and Ginny was bouncing with excitement. She invited Draco and me to her house for dinner a few weeks ago which was quite pleasant. She took a strong liking to him she told me, because she saw how happy I was with him. She invited him to the wedding and threatened to hunt him down and beat him to death if he did not attend.

"Do you want to tell me about it?" he stroked my arm gently. I absentmindedly was playing with the short, bleach blond hair on his chest and could barely remember the dream at all. I only remembered the feeling of anxiety and pain. I shuddered and Draco tightened his hold on me.

"No, I can't really remember anymore. You're a good distraction," I replied, sighing slightly. I heard the low rumble of his chuckle in his chest as he kissed my hair. We made love and then Draco held me in his arms again for about half an hour, I wasn't sure really, until he sighed and reluctantly crawled out of bed.

"I'm sorry Hermione, but I need to meet with some old business friends of my father for breakfast, and then have some other business matters to attend to today."

"But I took today off work to be with you," I whined as he made his way to the loo. "Besides, you're a Malfoy. You decide what days you feel like working and no one will say anything."

"You could always join me in the shower you know," he answered sticking his head out of the bathroom. I pouted and crossed my arms over my chest. He smiled at me and shrugged his shoulders before disappearing into the loo once again. I heard the water being turned on and sighed as I went to join him.

I stripped down and opened the glass door of the shower. I wrapped my arms around his waist, resting my cheek on his back. He turned to face me, kissing me lightly on the lips.

"Why don't you give Ginny a call? Perhaps you girls can go see a movie. If not I'm sure she has some last minute wedding issue to work out that she'll need your help on," he started to wash my body, "washing" my breasts longer than necessary. "I'll be back later tonight, around nine or so. I promise you will have my full undivided attention ok? We'll do whatever you want." He smiled seductively as he traced kisses from my neck down to my breasts, taking my nipple in between his teeth and gently nibbling. I gasped slightly, simply nodding as he pushed me against the wall of the shower, continuing to place kisses on my body as he went further and further down.



I did call Ginny at some point during the day as Draco had suggested. It surprised me that she didn't have last minute wedding preparations to attend to. She was spending the day with Harry and asked me to join them, but I felt that I would be intruding on their time together so I declined.

I walked around the manor, pausing to observe one of the several paintings every now and then. I went into the study to find a book to read, but I felt too restless to just sit down and read. I ended up going to the kitchen to find something to snack on.

As I made my way to the kitchen, I paused in front of the fire place, remembering events from some nights ago. For several nights, I had been having the same dream I had earlier that morning. Each time, I had a hard time remembering what happened in the dream and every time I woke up, Draco wasn't in bed with me. He would come to bed with me at night, but whenever I woke up in the early morning, he was gone. I once laid awake and pretended to be asleep to see what time he would come back to bed. That night, he didn't come back. I ended up falling back to sleep from exhaustion at around five o'clock. When I woke up again, it was ten in the morning and he was sitting in one of the chairs in the bedroom reading the morning paper. I didn't know how long he had been there, or if he had just returned from wherever he was.

Another time, I got out of bed after I had woken up from the dream and headed towards the kitchen to make myself a cup of tea. On my way there, Draco was squatting in front of the fireplace. He was mumbling something, talking to himself again. He abruptly stood up and put out the fire with a wave of his hand when I asked him what he was doing. I realized then that he wasn't talking to himself. "Couldn't sleep," was all he said. I remembered how annoyed and angry I felt that Draco wasn't telling me anything. I hadn't confronted him about his late night disappearances yet. I was starting to feel angry again and continued to walk to the kitchen.

The house elves were busy running about, cleaning and such. I picked up an apple and started aimlessly flipping through a magazine that was laying on one of the kitchen counters. I found an article named "Erotic Foods for Sex". Ideas of surprising Draco started running through my head, all memories of being angry disappearing for a moment. It all seemed so naughty and sexy; romantic dinner, lacy lingerie, chocolate, wine, candles.

"Beanie," I caught the attention of one of the house elves. "Do the Malfoy's own a fondue pot?" She looked at me with confused eyes and scratched her head. Of course the Malfoy's didn't own one. "Never mind." I scribbled a list of groceries before heading back to Draco's room to grab my purse. I still called it his room from time to time even though he constantly reminded me it was "our" room.

I figured that no one in Diagon Alley would sell fondue pots and decided on apparating to muggle London instead to get everything I needed. It took a couple of hours to find what I needed and by the time I got back to the manor it was almost dark. I still had time though, since Draco said he would be getting home later in the evening. I dismissed the house elves for the rest of the evening.

I decided against the fondue idea and decided on a late light dinner of finger foods. I prepared oysters, diced some fruits, sliced French bread and cheese, and chilled a bottle of wine. I laid out a tablecloth in front of the fireplace and dimmed the candles. All that I had left were some chocolate covered strawberries and to change into a new outfit I had bought.

It wasn't much of an outfit, but I chose it specifically for Draco. Really, all I was wearing was lingerie. I chose an emerald green lacy bra and thong set with a matching garter. I chose green for obvious reasons. The lace was black so I bought black stilettos, black stockings, and a black apron. I bought the apron in a sex shop and I blushed scarlet the whole time I was in there. It was a transparent material and only went around my waist. It was easy to put on and even easier to take off. I figured he would appreciate it. I curled my hair and let it rest loosely on my shoulders. I applied red lipstick and tried to run down the stairs wearing only one stiletto. I didn't even want to imagine what that would have looked like.

As I melted some chocolate I hoisted my shoeless foot on the counter and attempted to put on my stiletto. I heard Draco's voice coming from the hallway as I was finished the chocolate covered strawberries. He had come home earlier than he had said. I didn't quite catch what he had said but I figured he had called out my name to see if I was home. I smiled as I heard his footsteps coming towards the kitchen.

He was talking to himself as he came to the entrance of the kitchen and suddenly stopped talking. I assumed it was because I was bent over, picking up a dish cloth I had "accidently" dropped. My arse was in the air facing towards him. That's when I heard him cough. What confused me was that it didn't sound anything like Draco.

"Well this is interesting." That was definitely not Draco's voice. I spun around and gasped. Draco was there, standing in the doorway but he was not alone. He was with another man; I recognized him from our Hogwarts years but couldn't put a name on him. He was tall, dark, and quite attractive with high cheekbones and slanting eyes. I stood there, half naked not knowing what to say or do. Draco looked paler if such a thing was possible.

"You didn't say you got a hooker Draco," he said, looking me up and down. I glared at him.

"How dare you! I'm not a hooker,"

"Really?" he said, walking over to me as I put more distance between us. "Who are you then?" I looked over at Draco. He had almost a pleading look in his eyes and it looked as if he was trying to get me to read his mind. It confused me. I stood up straight and looked at the stranger in the eye.

"Hermione Granger." He widened his eyes and raised his eyebrows before looking back at Draco.

"Excellent work Draco, you're using her as a sex slave then? Wait until -"

"Shut it Blaise," Draco finally said, interrupting him.

"What? You have Hermione Granger, fuck this is perfect! Why didn't you say anything before? How long have you had her-"

"I said shut it," I looked over at Draco. He had his eyes closed, forehead furrowed, and was pinching the bridge of his nose. I remembered now, Blaise Zabini. He was close friends with Draco back in school. I guessed that they had gotten back in contact. So why did Draco look so...worried? My friends knew I was with Draco, why shouldn't his friends know? I became angry at the idea and instantly annoyed with Draco. I was tired of him hiding things from me and now on top of that, I felt as if he was embarrassed to even tell his friends he was with me.

Blaise looked at me and then at Draco for a moment. He saw my irritated glare towards Draco and Draco's look of...worry again? Blaise looked at me curiously before looking at Draco again, opening his mouth slightly to speak, but no words came out.

"You should go Blaise," Draco said opening his eyes.

"As you wish Master," Blaise bowed and I caught a snickering smile play on his lips. He glanced at me quickly before leaving the kitchen. Neither Draco nor I moved until we heard the front door close. Once we did, I turned my back towards him.

"Hermione-"

"You have a lot of things to explain Malfoy," I interrupted him. I turned to face him again.

"I know," he said. It shocked me slightly. I expected him to be more defensive.

"Well," I crossed my arms. "Go on then." He looked around the kitchen for a moment, opening and closing his mouth, but no words coming out. He closed his eyes and sighed heavily. I said nothing, waiting to see what sort of explanation he was going to give me. He opened his eyes again and walked towards me.

"Hermione, I-"I searched his eyes. I got frustrated and interrupted whatever he was going to say.

"I've had enough of this Draco. You've been sneaking off late at night thinking that I won't notice. You've been having late night chats with someone you don't want me to find out about, and now you tried to get me out of the house today, telling me you'd be home later only to come home earlier." I was practically screaming at him. I lowered my voice when I saw he wasn't saying anything back to me. "Your friend didn't even know we were together Draco. I'm not stupid. What are you hiding from me?"

Draco pursed his lips together, looking into my eyes. We were silent for a few minutes before I spoke again, an almost inaudible whisper that I didn't think Draco would hear me. I looked down at the floor as I said it. I could feel the tears beginning to run down my cheeks.

"Is there someone else Draco?"

"What?" I thought he didn't hear me but when I looked up again to meet his eyes, he looked angry and confused.

"Is there someone else?" I said more loudly this time. "Are you cheating on me?" What he did next truly took me by surprise.

He laughed.

"Hermione, don't be ridiculous." He took my face in his eyes and kissed my tears. "I love you Hermione, you must know that. I would never cheat on you. You are my life and there never was or ever will be anyone else other than you."

"Then why won't you tell me what you've been up to late at night? Why all the secrecy Draco? Why won't you tell me anything? I'm so confused. I don't know what's going on. I feel as if I can't trust you anymore." I pushed away from him at that point, searching his eyes once again. He stared into my eyes again, as if searching for an answer that I would have wanted to hear. He sighed and took my hands in his.

"I can't tell you anything right now Hermione. I'm not cheating on you. If anything I'm trying to protect you." I was confused by his words. I opened my mouth to say something put he placed a cold finger on my lips and shook his head. "You have to trust me."

"What?" I asked angrily, pushing him away. "What in bloody hell are you talking about? That doesn't explain anything. How can you ask me to trust you when you're making it almost impossible to do so? You've confused me even more Draco. You haven't explained anything to me!"

"Hermione," he grabbed my face staring deeply into my eyes. "Hermione please, I'm begging you. Trust me."

"Is that all you can say?!" I screamed pushing him away again. He stood there, looking at me holding his hands in the air. I fought back the tears and slapped him, hard across the face before storming off.

I slipped on a pair of jeans and a green blouse when I got back to our bedroom. I grabbed a small suitcase and threw in my toiletries and knickers along with my shoes for the wedding. I grabbed my maid of honour dress and wand and apparated in front of the Weasley's household. Ginny was staying at her parent's house tonight. I figured I would "surprise" her with one last sleepover before she got married. That was my excuse anyways. I wiped away any stubborn tears and went to knock on the front door, the contact of Draco's cheek with my hand still stinging. That night, I had the same dream and remembered everything that happened in it for the first time.

**A/N: **DRAMA! Shame on Draco for hiding things from Hermione. I wonder what exactly it is he is hiding, hmm...Anyways so sorry for the super late update! I'll update again soon, don't forget to comment on this chapter, it's much appreciated!!

-Necia xoxo


	15. The Dark Mark

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing just the story blah, blah, blah. You know the drill.

**Chapter Fifteen – The Dark Mark**

When I woke up the next day, I convinced myself that Draco would not attend the wedding. Ginny would eventually hunt him down and kill him like she said. I thought about my actions from the previous night while I was getting ready. I felt extremely childish and lectured myself for being such a drama queen.

Yes, I started talking to myself again.

I suppose things would have turned out differently if I had sat down with Draco and calmly discussed my concerns. But no, I had to have a major freak out and just had to slap him. While I was in bed, I realized that Draco had said he loved me for the first time. But then I thought if he loved me, why didn't he come after me?

I tried to shake off these thoughts I was having about Draco so I wouldn't ruin Ginny and Harry's special day with my foul mood. I used their wedding day as a distraction to forget everything that happened the previous evening. It somehow helped. Ginny's joy was contagious and I ended up feeling joyful through it all.

She looked lovely in her wedding gown. I could have never looked as gorgeous in it as she did. While I had been getting ready, I didn't pay much attention on how I looked. It was most likely due to the fact that I couldn't get Draco off my mind. After I had helped Ginny getting ready, I caught a glimpse of myself in the mirror.

I wore a tight fitting violet halter gown made of silk. It hugged my curves at just the right places. The halter part of the dress and the parts that covered my breasts were made of a crinkly material. Beneath the bust and the hem of the dress was a floral design of a dark shade of purple. Underneath the hem of the dress was a darker shade of purple silk that fluttered behind me when I walked. I wore chandelier earrings and my hair was styled into an elegant up-do. I had to admit, as conceited as I may have sounded, I looked pretty damn good. If only Draco could see me...

Shut up brain. No more talk of Draco. Stupid annoying ferret.

The wedding party was to have their own limo to arrive at the church, take us to have our photos taken, and then to the reception. Harry and Ginny were to have their own limo, a white one while ours was black. But to arrive at the church, Ginny would join the wedding party in the black limo. Fred, George, and a friend of Harry's were the groomsmen while the maids were part of Ginny's extended family. Ron of course, would be the best man. I wasn't too sure how I felt about being so close to Ron again after so long.

On our way to the church, it was only Ginny's maids, Ginny, and I in the black limo. The men would accompany Harry naturally. Once we arrived, Fred and George came out to the limo to greet us. I was the first to step out of the limo. Both of them whistled and teased me about what I had done with the real Hermione Granger. I pretended to be offended. I had to make my way inside the church to get ready for the procession. Also, a part of me hoped to see Draco sitting handsomely in his tux somewhere in the church. I lectured myself again. I was only hurting myself for keeping my hopes up only to be disappointed later on.

As soon as I walked in, I saw Harry and Ron. Harry looked handsome in his black tux and white silk shirt. He kept pacing back and forth but stopped to look up at me and smile. I smiled back and walked over to him, hugging him tightly.

"I'm so happy for you Harry," I whispered, fighting back tears. I couldn't afford to mess up my make up right before the wedding ceremony began.

"Thanks Hermione, you look beautiful," His emerald eyes met mine for a moment before he turned his attention to Ron. "Don't you think so Ron?" I looked over at him and raised my eyebrows in surprise. He cleaned up nicely. He wore a black tux as well with a violet silk shirt and tie that matched my dress. He smiled sheepishly at me and nodded.

"Yeah, you do. You look great Hermione." He came over to me and awkwardly went to shake my hand. I giggled slightly and shook my head and hugged him tightly too. He seemed surprised at first and then wrapped his arms around me. It felt familiar, safe, to be in his arms again.

Everything seemed to go by so quickly. Soon enough, Ron and I were walking arm in arm down the aisle. We stood at the altar, Ron on Harry's right, and me next to where Ginny would stand. I quickly scanned the church, looking for a head of bleach blond hair. I sighed quietly when I couldn't find him. Soon enough, everyone in the church stood as the wedding march began to play. I hadn't noticed the rest of the wedding party had walked down the aisle and took their places next to Ron and myself. Ginny walked gracefully down the aisle, her parents on either side of her, a gleaming smile spread across her face.

Both Mr. and Mrs. Weasley hugged Harry and Ginny before going to sit. One by one, the rest of the wedding party sat down in their designated seats along with the guests. I quickly scanned the church, and my hopes were shot down again.

The ceremony passed by too quickly. Or perhaps I just wasn't paying attention. I pictured myself standing at the altar, with Draco at my side, squeezing my hand tightly every time a stubborn tear would fall. Since I cried so easily, I accepted the fact that I was going to look terrible on my wedding day. I groaned quietly to myself at the thought.

Before I knew it, we were walking out of the church towards the limos. I was the second last to get into the limo. After I made sure Ron wouldn't step or sit on my dress when he sat next me, I looked up at him to tell him he could join us. As I did, I saw him, standing there at the doors of the church, looking as gorgeous as ever, looking back at me.

My heart pumped harder, the butterflies in my stomach were in a complete frenzy, and a strong longing to have him closer to me overcame me. His bleach blond hair blew freely in the light breeze, and he smiled his crooked smile at me. He waved at me, running his free hand lightly through his hair. At that moment, I felt as if everyone else surrounding us had completely disappeared. I extended my arm, as if I was reaching out to him. In an instance, he moved away from me and I questioned myself why he was running away. I realized then, that the limo had started moving and we were driving away.

Duh.

I told myself that the Draco I saw was a figment of my imagination. I craned my neck back to see Draco standing next to the sidewalk, watching our limo drive away. He wore his black suit and emerald green shirt I picked out for him. I smiled to myself as I turned back around. Maybe he wasn't such a stupid annoying ferret after all.

Well, to an extent anyways.



The photos seemed to take an eternity to do. As happy as I was for my friends, I couldn't help but to feel anxious to see Draco again, to talk to him and apologize for having an outburst and for not being understanding. I still wanted to know what was going on, I didn't like being left in the dark, but I knew that I had to be patient. Draco would tell me everything I wanted to know with time.

We finally made our way to the reception and I wish I could just enchant the damn limo to fly there. I probably could have, but then there would be hell to pay at the ministry. I kept fiddling my fingers and constantly checking my reflection in the mirror. I caught Ron glancing towards me every now and then but always quickly looking away when I looked at him.

"So Ron," I said eventually, trying to make polite conversation. "How are things with Scarlett?"

"Oh," he blushed a light shade of crimson. "We aren't together anymore."

Opps.

"Oh, I see. I'm sorry to hear that. What happened?" I felt so embarrassed.

"I realized that I didn't love her as much as-"he stopped himself and looked up at me. He blushed some more before looking back down at his hands.

"Didn't love her as much as you thought you did?"

He shrugged.

"Sure, I guess that works."

I furrowed my eyebrows. I opened my mouth again to ask him what he meant but he spoke before I did.

"How are things with the albino ferret?"

Oh bravo Ron. Just had to go and ruin it.

"_Draco_ and I are fine thank you," I became annoyed, putting emphasize on Draco's name. I lowered my voice to a whisper, making sure only Ron would be able to hear me. "At least I have the decency to call your expensive prostitute by her first name." He looked up at me in shock, mouth slightly open in disbelief. Apparently Scarlett didn't mention to him that she was very open about her profession and had told me what she had done for a living. I turned my head away from him and crossed my arms.

I expected him to say something but instead he stayed quiet. At one point it seemed like he was going to say something but appeared reluctant. I tried to ignore him and concentrated instead that I would soon see Draco. Soon enough, I could apologize for being a prat and he would forgive me and things would be back to the way they were.

We finally arrived at the wedding reception and walked into the banquet room. As much as I would have wanted to break his arm instead, I rested my hand lightly on Ron's arm, smiling sweetly as we lead the wedding party. Everyone applauded as Harry and Ginny walked in. When we reached the head table, I was grateful that I would have Harry and Ginny sit in between Ron and myself. Perhaps I was being a bit uptight but I paid no attention to it.

I scanned the room in search of Draco. He wasn't hard to find. He sat at the table closet to the head table with Ginny's parents and other family members. It was easy to find him because his pale complexion and bleach blond hair stuck out like a sore thumb amongst the mass of fiery red hair.

Any irritation I had suddenly melted away when my eyes rested on him. He looked up me and smiled. I returned the gesture. Dinner was served and toasts were made to the bride and groom. I excused myself at some point to find the ladies room. I hoped that Draco would follow so we would have some time alone to talk before the dancing began. I had to dance with Ron. I would have preferred to twist my ankle.

As I left the loo, an arm snaked around my waist and pulled me into a dim lighted hallway leading to the emergency exit. I gasped slightly but then wrapped my arms around his neck.

"Oh Draco, I'm sorry. I acted like such a prat," he patted my back lightly as I continued to ramble. "I shouldn't have reacted the way I did but you weren't telling me anything and I couldn't control my temper any longer. And I didn't mean to hurt you but I was just so angry. Besides, I think that I hurt myself more than I hurt you, and-"

"Hermione, listen to me for a moment," he put a finger to my lips. His voice was like silk, making me my legs slightly buckle. "I was never upset with you. I understand completely why you reacted the way you did. I would have done the same in that situation. I wouldn't have hit you of course, but you know what I mean."

I tightened my hold on him, never wanting to let go. He pulled away from me and caressed my face with a cold finger. I stared into those silver eyes that were burned into my memory and sighed. He kissed me then. Several light kisses on my lips, cheek, chin and eventually my neck. He pushed me against the wall, kissing my neck as he did.

"I missed you last night Hermione," he whispered as he continued to lightly kiss my neck. "Wanking off just isn't the same as the real thing. Seeing you in that naughty outfit was mind blowing." I rolled my eyes.

"You only missed me because you didn't have sex?"

"Well no," I could feel his lips curve into a smile against my neck. "I missed holding you. I missed taking in your scent and falling asleep to your breathing. I can't live without you Hermione. I don't know what I would do if you weren't with me." He ran his hand from my face, down my neck, pausing to grope my breast lightly through my dress, and continued to stroke my leg. I closed my eyes, letting out a light sigh as he hiked my leg over his hip. He snaked his hand up my dress and caressed my leg, pausing at my inner thigh to lightly trace small circles.

"Didn't you miss me?" he whispered as he kissed my lips ever so slightly before kissing me harder, more passionately. I intertwined my fingers in his hair, pushing my body against his. I could feel his manhood bulging against me.

"I take that as a yes," he continued, breaking our kiss. "But I'd rather hear you say it. Did you miss me?" He moved his hand slowly up my thigh, pausing to lightly touch the outside of my knickers.

"Yes," I whispered. I inhaled sharply as he moved a finger inside my knickers and rubbed my clit lightly.

"Mmm," he said as he found the entrance and slowly slid his finger inside of me and then a second, making me inhale sharply again.

Of course, I was aware that we could be caught at any moment but Draco was always a good distraction. I moaned quietly and pulled on his hair lightly, urging him to continue. But he stopped then, putting my leg down and pulling himself away from me. I opened my mouth to protest but then understood why he had stopped.

I could hear from the banquet hall that they had announced the wedding party was to share a dance with Harry and Ginny. I pouted slightly and Draco laughed.

"Don't worry, we'll be going home soon enough where we can continue this later," he kissed my lips once more. "But now I'll be able to smell you on my fingers for the rest of night and it's going to drive me crazy. I might have to take you drag you to a closet or something for a quickie."

"You won't need to drag me," I said. "It's not like I would crazy enough to protest." He smiled seductively at me.

"You've become quite the little minx Ms. Granger."

"I blame you Mr. Malfoy."

"Yes, I have that effect on people." I slapped his arm playfully as I giggled. I kissed him goodbye as I scuffled off back to the banquet hall. I don't know why I bother trying to run in heels, I end up looking like my legs are glued together.

I made it back to the banquet hall just as the rest of the wedding party was making their way to the dance floor. I spotted Ron leaning against a wall. I figured he would have been looking for me. He saw me coming over to him and met me halfway. We linked arms and made our way to the dance floor, taking our positions never saying a word.

As I rested my hand on his shoulder and placed my other in his hand, I noticed that Ron had a very stern look on his face. His lips were pursed together and he wasn't looking at me. I frowned and continued to watch his face, to see if he would look at me. The music started playing and we began to waltz around. He still wasn't looking at me. I opened my mouth to say something but he beat me to it.

"I may have dated a prostitute Hermione, but at least I never fucked her in dark corners of public places." My mouth dropped open.

"That may be so," I responded between my teeth. "But you fucked her on my bed while I was at work didn't you?"

"That's not worse than what you and that ferret were doing behind the bathrooms," he hissed. I could feel my anger building.

"So you don't deny it then." He didn't reply. "I wasn't fucking him Ronald. What's to you what I do and don't do anyways? I don't see how it's any of your business."

"It's my business because I care about you too much Hermione," he lowered his head to whisper in my ear. "Even if you're not with me, I'd rather see you alone than fucking a murderer."

"Oh grow up Ron that was a long time ago. You don't know what happened. You couldn't possibly understand."

"You're right," he said, letting me go. The music had ended. "I don't understand how you can be with him after knowing he murdered your father."

I looked at him, dumbfounded by his words, not wanting to believe what he said, hoping that he said it wrong.

"He didn't tell you then did he?" Ron whispered as me bowed at me, following suit of the other groomsmen. I curtsied. "I didn't think he would."

"I don't believe you."

"There's a difference between not believing and not wanting to believe Hermione."

"You're lying," my voice was no more than a whisper. I could feel the tears beginning to form.

"If you say so," He offered me his arm and escorted me off the dance floor. I looked up at Ron, to see if he would start laughing and that what he said was just some sick joke. But he held his serious pose, not looking at me, not even after we were off the dance floor and he walked away from me.



The rest of the evening was a blur to me. It was almost as if someone had put a spell on me and I couldn't break out of its trance. Draco danced with me once or twice, I couldn't quite remember. He asked me if everything was alright, and I remember nodding. I couldn't look at him. Ron couldn't possibly know what he was talking about. How could he be so sure? I couldn't believe what he had told me.

I didn't want to.

I remember dancing with Harry once and Ginny another time. While dancing with them, I forgot for an instance what was troubling me. I promised myself I wouldn't ruin their day with my problems.

The reception was ending. At some point Ginny threw her bouquet. Someone later told me that it had landed at my feet when I wasn't paying attention and someone else grabbed it. I remember saying goodbye to Harry and Ginny and wishing them the best. Somehow, I found myself back at Malfoy manor.

As soon as I walked through the door, I looked at Draco for the first time in hours. He looked concerned. His lips were moving, speaking to me but I couldn't hear him. I broke out of my dazed trance and heard what he was saying.

"...Every time I try to it just sounds like gibberish." I blinked several times confused at what he was trying to say.

"Hermione, I mps frhth mytrisntr fgc,"

"Pardon?" it felt odd to speak again and it indeed sound like he was speaking gibberish. Probably because I wasn't paying attention what he was saying. Draco became frustrated and ran his fingers through his hair.

"Do you see why I can't tell you what's going on? It's impossible for me to tell you no matter how hard I try!" I squinted my eyes at him, trying to comprehend. It didn't seem important to me at the moment. I had other things on my mind.

"You killed my father." Draco's frustration turned into confusion. He blinked several times.

"What did you say?"

"You killed my father to have that ugly thing tattooed to your arm." His face turned to stone and he stood up straight, shifting uncomfortably. I walked up to him and took his face in my hands.

"Oh Draco, please in the name of everything good, please tell me you didn't." I searched his eyes, pleading, hoping to find the truth. He stared deeply into my eyes and opened his mouth to say something. When nothing came out, he closed his eyes and sighed.

I felt that every part of my being was breaking into a million little pieces. A rush of emotions ran through me; anger, betrayal, confusion, denial, sadness, and hate. And then, as if something had burst open, tears started streaming down my face. It all made sense. I thought back to the words he once said to me.

_Oh Hermione, you'd think differently if you knew **who** I killed._

I slapped him. Once, twice, three times. I eventually lost count. I repeatedly pounded my fists on his chest. He never flinched or said a word and never tried to stop me.

"Why-did-it-have-to-be-you!" I said between sobs, hitting his chest with each word. I cried harder and harder, letting my hair fall out of its elegant up-do and not caring that my mascara was running. I slid down to the floor, burying my face in my hands. I calmed down for a moment.

"And why must I love you so?" I whispered and started bawling again.

"I – I don't know what to say Hermione," Draco's silky voice that I learned to love was no more than a whisper. "You know very well, more than anyone that if I could go back and change things, I would. You know that I hate this, this, _thing_ that has scarred my life. It's a constant reminder of the monster that I am."

I lifted my head, only to come face to face to him. I saw his beautiful face full of pain. His eyes were tearful. I pitied him.

And yet I hated him.

I couldn't stay a moment longer. I stood and wiped away my tears although they stubbornly kept falling.

"I need some time to myself," my voice was shaky, broken. He looked up at me. He got on his knees and crawled over to me, wrapping his arms around my waist. I kept my arms pinned at my sides, my hands curled into fists.

"There's nothing I can do or say to make you stay is there?"

"What do you think Malfoy?" I wanted to hurt him. I wanted him to feel everything I was feeling. I knew that by referring to him by his last name was a start. I made sure that it sounded cruel when I said it. "You're a completely different person to me now. You're the same person who I hated as a child and now I hate you even more. There is no way in hell you can make me stay."

As much as I wanted to hurt him, my words hurt me more than I could ever imagine. I knew what I was saying wasn't completely true. I didn't hate him. As much as I wanted to, with all my strength, I couldn't help but to love him more than anything.

His grip around my waist loosened and he lowered his arms. He backed away from me and stood. His beautiful angel face was stained with tears, and it broke whatever was left of my heart. He wiped the tears away and put his hands behind his back. It was very clear that he wasn't going to stop me from leaving.

"Perhaps it is better this way," was all he said before he turned and walked away.

**A/N: **OME! The horror! The tragedy! What happens now? Thanks to everyone who reviewed! Don't forget about this chapter too.

-Necia xoxo


	16. The Bitter Taste of Forbidden Fruit

**Disclaimer: **Same old, same old. Nothing belongs to me but the story.

**Chapter Sixteen – The Bitter Taste of Forbidden Fruit**

I once heard that time will mend a broken heart.

May...

June...

July...

August...

September...

October...

November...

Whoever said that was a complete moron.

December was rapidly approaching. It had been almost eight months since I left him and I still felt the same. I was broken, torn, and ever so confused. As much as I knew that I should hate him, I couldn't. I tried to convince myself that having him out of my life was how it should be, and how it always should have been.

"_Perhaps it is better this way."_

But I begged to differ. I found myself in a similar situation that I was in before _he_ became a bigger part of my life, before I had tasted the forbidden fruit. Now that I had tasted it, I told myself, I realized it was bitterer than I had expected.

I moved back to my old flat that I shared with Ron. I would have wanted to work things out with him, try to work on our strained friendship. But he simply refused to have anything to do with me. He wouldn't even look at me, nonetheless talk to me. I wanted to ask him exactly how he knew Dra-_he _was responsible for my father's death. But he simply ignored me. I threw a book at him. He moved out the following day. Ginny later told me that he was staying at the Burrow with his parents until he found a place for himself.

Harry later explained that when Dra-_he_ joined our side during the war, they did a full inspection to make sure he wasn't lying about turning good. With that inspection, they had to check his wand and it revealed every spell he had ever performed. When the killing curse came up, they asked him about it and he had to confess who he murdered. Only Harry and Ron were present.

Wonderful.

Harry told me they kept it from me for my own good. They didn't want me to venture out on some sort of rampage and kill Mr. Malfoy instead of capturing Death Eaters. Reasonable enough.

And so here I was again. Work, eat, feed the cat, and sleep. My life, yet again, was going nowhere. I was once a walking piece of misery and now I was that, but ten times worse. I cried constantly. Everything in my flat reminded me of him. If I ever wanted excitement in my life, I sure as hell got it. I just never thought I would end up worse than I was to begin with.

I felt as if a massive and vital portion of my heart was viciously ripped out leaving wounds that could not and would not heal. Any memory of him would pick at these wounds, making the pain in my chest unbearable. I couldn't even bring myself to say his name without having to clutch at my chest.

When I was with him, I felt happier than I had ever felt in my life. He was the missing piece of the puzzle that was my life. He completed me. And now that he was gone, I had become incomplete once again. It felt that the world had become so cold now that he was no longer at my side.

I knew that I should hate him. I should have hated him with every part of my being. I should have despised everything about him. He and his father murdered my parents. It was because of him that I would never have my father walk me down the aisle on my wedding day. It was because of him that my children would never have their Grandpa Granger.

So why did I love him with every inch of my existence?

I tried very hard not to think about him. I distracted myself with work and chores around the house. But thinking about him was inevitable. I asked myself why I loved him why I couldn't forget about him and go back to hating him as I once did.

One day, I was curled up into a ball on my couch. The same couch I laid him on a little over a year ago. I was pondering these things over and over again. I kept asking myself why, why, WHY in bloody hell I couldn't hate him. I wanted to hate him as passionately as I loved him. I was so tired of thinking the same things over and over again, day after day. I needed to escape somehow. I figured that staying in the house so long wasn't going to help me anytime soon. I grabbed my purse and jacket and apparated to the first place that came to mind.

When I opened my eyes, I found myself in muggle London. I should have thought of a better place to go. London is a large city and of all the places I decided to come to was the exact place he had saved my life a little over a year ago.

I sighed and began to walk around. As I wandered around, going nowhere in particular I ended up thinking about him again. This time though, I wasn't asking myself questions on why I couldn't hate him, but rather reflecting on what he had told me about his task long before I knew who he had to murder. I had been pondering for months now if I could ever forgive him. In some bizarre manner, I hoped I could figure out a way to justify his actions.

Thinking back, the only real reason Dra-_he _decided to become a Death Eater was to prove he was worth something to his father. I wondered, doesn't every child try to prove to their parents they're worth something? Everyone tries to impress their parents. Everyone wants their parents to feel proud about them when they accomplish something. I know I did. I was the top student back in the day and did it not bring me joy to see how proud my parents were? Draco...I cringed to say his name...only wanted his father to be proud of him.

"_But no matter what I did, no matter how extreme, it was never enough. I was an embarrassment to him and I would always be."_

His words now seemed to haunt my memories, now that I understood the full meaning behind them. How horrible it must have been for him, growing up and never being able to satisfy his father. I imagined Narcissa was more supportive of her son but then Lucius would always bring him down. Draco said that Lucius would say he was unworthy to carry the Malfoy name. No wonder Draco was such a git at school. He looked up to his father, but Lucius never paid any attention to him.

So then Draco set out on a mission. A mission to prove to his father he would do anything to try and show Lucius he was worth something, no matter how drastic or dangerous that mission could turn out to be. Surely Draco knew that the consequences of his decision in becoming a Death Eater would be great? Was it actually necessary for Draco to take that step just so his father would be proud to call him his son?

But then again, from everything Draco told me about his father, and everything I already knew, Lucius Malfoy was never easy to please. So then Draco was given his first assignment. In school, your first assignment tends to be pretty easy. In this case, Draco had to murder in cold blood a defenceless muggle, m_y _father.

MY father.

Draco didn't want to do it as I recall him telling me. So then why didn't he say no? Lucius surely couldn't have done much else to emotionally wound Draco. He had already made it crystal clear that he disowned the boy as his son. Would Voldemort have murdered him on the spot? That seemed most likely. I tried to put myself in the same situation Draco had found himself in. Kill someone or die. Not the easiest options to choose from. I suppose it didn't help that Lucius urged him to do the deed either.

"_He edged me on, yelling at me, forcing at me to cast the spell. He called me worthless and wished that I had never been born."_

I pictured the scene in my head over and over again. Death Eaters standing all around my parent's living room, one of them with their filthy hands holding back my screaming mother. My father cornered against a wall, pleading for his life from a boy no older than me. And Draco, standing there with his wand directed at my father's chest, a look of utter torment spread across his beautiful face.

I had to sit down at this point. The specific image was too much to bear. I found the nearest bench and held my head in my hands. I did manage to control myself. I just had to catch my breath.

"_If I could go back and change things, I would."_

I wonder how many times I said that exact phrase. Millions of times I'm sure. Draco had made a mistake. A grave and monstrous mistake, but a mistake nonetheless. He is after all, only human. Everyone makes mistakes and wish they could take back things they have done in the past. I was pretty sure most people didn't kill someone either but that was beside the point. From that moment on after the deed was done, Draco refused the life of a Death Eater. He turned against everyone and everything he had ever believed in. I can imagine he would have suffered his father's fate if he hadn't. He may have turned against evil, but did that mean I could forgive him? I pondered about this long and hard for months.

There was one thing I was certain about. I loved Draco more than anything. He was my life and soul. He was the very core of my existence. And I missed him terribly. I knew there was a possibility that I could never completely forgive him. But I could forgive him enough for now because I knew I couldn't live without him.

And that was good enough.

**A/N: **Hello my lovelies! So this chapter was pretty straight forward...just Hermione working out her feelings and such. Man, almost eight months since she left the love of her life. Pretty harsh don't you think? Well, she did say she wanted some time. I think it was worth it. Anyways, thanks to everyone who reviewed and have been reading. You are all extraordinarily awesome!! A million thanks to my darling ladylucyfrr for helping me figure out those ever so annoying "tip of my tongue" words and phrases.

-Necia xoxo


	17. Taste of Heaven

**Disclaimer: **You know the drill. I own nothing except the story, etc. Blah, blah, blah.

**Chapter Seventeen – Taste of Heaven**

As much as I was dying to see Draco again, I needed to give myself some time to figure out what exactly I wanted to say to him. We had been apart for eight months. One more little week wouldn't hurt. Or two. This was what I had come up with so far.

Hi.

After that, I just pictured myself snogging him within an inch of his life and then heading over to the bedroom. But then I thought it would take too long to reach the bedroom so I would have to rip his pants off right then and there.

My dilemma was pretty obvious I'd say. I was too preoccupied thinking about everything I would _do _to him instead of figuring out what I would say. I blamed him for being such a sex god. On top of figuring out what I would say, I needed to figure out on an outfit. I had turned my closet upside down and declared that I had nothing to wear and would just show up nude. Then I started imagining him pouncing on me and then I had to start the thinking process all over again. It was all very frustrating. I figured I would show up the manor instead of having Draco come to my flat. The distance to the bedroom at the manor was much larger than in my flat so I wouldn't distract myself with trying to get him in bed without saying what I wanted to say first. I suppose we could always have sex a couple of times and then talk.

I have a problem, don't I?

I sighed as I look at all my clothes lying in a pile on top of my bed. First things first, I needed to figure out what I would say. I needed to take a walk to clear my mind of all things sexual I so badly wanted to do to Draco. I slipped on a pair of jeans and a red sweater as I waved my wand to clean up the mess. Ah, the convenience of magic. I bundled up and grabbed my purse. A cup of coffee would be nice.

I apparated to the familiar spot in muggle London where it all began. I smiled at the thought, remembering how filthy Draco looked that night and yet I couldn't help but drool. Of course now he meant more to me than anything else in this world, and he was a good person all in all, but the drop dead gorgeousness was a pretty good addition I'd say. I walked into the coffee shop and placed my order. As I waited for my coffee, I turned to find a table. As I scanned the shop, I spotted Harry sitting in a corner of the shop. It was the type of spot where you sat if you didn't want to be seen. I wondered what he was doing alone in muggle London. I suppose he didn't recognize me when I walked in the shop because I was all bundled up.

"Grande Caramel Macchiato," I heard the barista say behind the counter. I turned to retrieve my drink, sipping it carefully as I turned back to make my way to join Harry. To my surprise, someone had already joined him at his table. Harry's mystery friend removed their hood and I gasped, jumping slightly and ended up burning my lip. I quietly cursed as I turned back around and put on my hood.

What in bloody hell was Draco doing here?

I stole a quick glance behind my shoulder. What could Draco and Harry possibly have to talk about alone, and in muggle London of all places? I sat down at the nearest table to me, some distance away from them. I tried to read their lips to make out they were saying. It was absolutely hopeless. It seemed that they were whispering. Perhaps Draco was asking Harry about me? But Harry would have told me he was still in contact with Draco after all this time. Wouldn't he?

I was so confused and I hated being confused. I'm Hermione Granger damn it. Being confused isn't in my nature. I wanted so badly to know what they were talking about. I looked up quickly in their direction and watched as Harry stood and left.

Draco remained at the table, staring at his hands, deep in thought. I recognized the gesture. He stared at his hands when he was worried about something. It had been such a long time since I had last laid eyes on him. He was so beautiful. He ran his fingers through his hair making my heart ache. I always loved it when he did that. He looked up slowly as I quickly looked back down at my coffee cup. He must have felt someone staring, or rather, ogling him. I could almost feel it when his silver eyes passed over me. My heart was pounding so hard that I was almost certain people half way across the world could hear it, humans and vampires alike. I was breathing so heavily that I only hoped Draco wouldn't recognize my breathing from across the room.

Recognize my breathing? Honestly Hermione, get a grip.

Great there I go talking to myself again.

I could feel the sweat beads rolling down my neck. I was much too warm but if I removed my hood and toque, I would have to face Draco and that was exactly what I didn't want at the moment. I wasn't prepared to face him. I suppose I could have left, but it was hard to tear myself away. I took another sip of my coffee so I could steal another glance at Draco. He was standing, pushing his chair in. I looked away as he turned to leave. I didn't look up again until I heard the door open and close. I could see him walking away through the window of the coffee shop. He turned a corner and he was gone. I stared at the spot he had stood only a moment ago much longer than I had expected.

I removed my hood and toque, relieved to cool off slightly. I had to walk in the same direction Draco had gone, and I didn't want to risk running into him. I waited. Five minutes. Ten. Fifteen. He would have been long gone by then. I finished my coffee and left the shop. I was still much to warm and the cool winter air was refreshing so I left my hood down. My hair blew freely in the wind. It was going to be quite a hassle to detangle it when I got home but I could care less. I had seen Draco and that was all that mattered.

I slowed as I reached the corner where I saw Draco turn, fearing that I would bump into him. As much as I was dying to see him again, I still wasn't sure what I would say to him. I held my breath as I slowly peeked around the corner.

Nothing.

I let out my breath, either out of relief or disappointment. Perhaps both, I wasn't sure. I continued to walk to the hidden apparation point, with Draco still on my mind. What could have he and Harry been talking about? Whatever it was, it left Draco in a worried state of mind. That didn't make me feel any less curious on what they spoke about. I sighed when I reached the apparation point. The million questions running through my head were giving me a slight headache. I closed my eyes as I concentrated on my destination.

When I opened them again, I found myself in my living room. I removed my outerwear and tossed them onto the couch as I ran my fingers through my hair. The tea kettle was whistling from my kitchen. I didn't remember putting on tea before I left. I wouldn't be that reckless to leave something on the stove anyways. I wrapped my hand tightly around my wand and quietly made my way to the kitchen.

I peeked into the kitchen and I felt as if the air had been knocked out of my lungs. There he was, Draco Malfoy looking as gorgeous as ever, leaning casually against the counter as he poured some tea and milk into a cup. I sighed.

Wait, what? Draco was in my kitchen! I entered the kitchen and placed my hands on my hips.

"What the hell are you doing?" Well, that was a nice way to start things off after so long. He turned to face me, stirring his tea as he did.

"Making a cup of tea," he answered casually as he raised an eyebrow at me. "What does it look like I'm doing?"

"I mean, what are you doing _here_?"

"Well if that's what you meant, why didn't you ask that in the first place?" I crossed my arms and glared at him.

"That still doesn't answer my question."

"Well I was in the neighbourhood and I fancied a cup of tea. I hope that's alright."

"No, it's not alright. You can't just come here whenever you feel like it. Especially when I'm not at home."

"Oh," he sipped his tea. "I'm terribly sorry then." Ugh! Why did he always know the perfect way to annoy me? We were silent for a moment. I was positively fuming and he continued to drink his tea. The nerve of him! It was hard to stay angry with him when he kept stealing glances at me through his hair and smiling. But then I would get angry all over again when he'd start quietly chuckling. He was the first to speak.

"I don't mean to sound rude or anything, but jeez Hermione. Don't you offer your guests to sit down? My legs are getting ridiculously tired."

"You broke into my house!"

"Mmm," he said as he sipped his tea and shook a finger. "That my dear, is where you are mistaken. Technically, I didn't break into your house, I apparated into it."

"It's the same thing!"

"Well then, maybe you should put up a barrier so that random people won't apparate into your house."

"Yes, well I did. I'm sure you were aware of that when you TOOK IT DOWN!" I hadn't meant to raise my voice at the end, but my anger was getting too great to bear.

"Oh," he sipped his tea again. "That must mean it wasn't a very good one." I gave him a death look. "I could always leave if that's what you want..."

"NO!" He smirked, satisfied with my reaction. My mouth reacted faster than my brain. I would have wanted to come off as more casual than sound desperate.

"Excellent, I hadn't quite finished my tea anyways."

"You're unbelievable," I shook my head. I knew he was just trying to lighten the mood but he was still annoying as hell.

"Yes, I am. In more ways than one, wouldn't you agree?" he winked at me and I rolled my eyes. He raised his eyebrow again and smirked as he made his way closer to me. Merlin he was sexy. He sighed deeply as he pushed my hair back and brought his lips to my ear. "Or do you mean to tell me that you have forgotten all those nights?" My heart felt like it was having a panic attack. His expensive cologne penetrated my nose as goose bumps appeared on my skin. I had to remember how to breathe before I answered.

"Not quite," he pulled back at this point so that our eyes met. It had been too long since I had stared into those eyes.

"Pity," a devious smile played on his lips. "I was hoping that I would have to remind you." Damn. "Besides, it not easy to forget the way you would dig your nails into my back as you moaned my name," he continued, smirking again.

"That's ridiculous, I never moaned." At least I didn't recall. It's not something I would have tried to keep conscious about. My mind with have been preoccupied with other matters. Draco simply laughed.

"Right and I'm a pink elephant."

"More like a pain in the ass," I muttered. I felt slightly embarrassed as I tried to picture myself moaning. It wasn't a very pleasant image.

"Yes, so I've been told," he ran his fingers through his hair, smirking again. "But you did moan, of that I can assure you." He smiled an incredibly naughty smile. It made me melt but I had to look away. It was so utterly sexy the way he was looking at me, and I didn't want to do anything irrational. We were silent for another moment or two.

I could feel the sexual tension in the atmosphere. It was driving me crazy. I wasn't sure for how long the silence drained on. But if I wasn't careful, I would probably do something way out of my character. And that's exactly what I did.

The moment he licked his lips, I completely lost it. I practically pounced on him, nearly knocking us both over. I pressed my lips against his lips and tasted heaven. He was utterly shocked, of that I was sure since he went rigid for a moment. But then he relaxed and wrapped his arms around me, pulling me closer.

He caressed my back slightly before snaking his hands up my shirt to undo my bra. He broke our kiss only briefly to pull off my sweater and toss away my bra. The contact of his cold hands on my breasts made me shiver and I could feel his lips curl into a smile against my lips. I interlaced my fingers in his hair as Draco placed kisses along my jaw and down to my neck, pushing me towards the counter as he did.

He ran his hands down to my legs, pulling them around his waist as he lifted me onto the kitchen counter. He traced the shape of my lips with his tongue, just the way I liked it, as started to work on unbuttoning my jeans. I broke the kiss only to pull off his shirt and he started to kiss my neck again, caressing a breast as he did. I moaned quietly as I pulled him closer with my legs and ran my hands up and down his back. I rested my chin on his shoulder, kissing his neck lightly, tasting his sweat and cologne. I opened my eyes momentarily and looked out the window. I gasped slightly as I saw my elderly neighbour peeking through her window into my kitchen, a look of complete intrigue spread across her face. It was slightly creepy. I didn't like the idea of being watched during my most intimate moments, especially by my elderly neighbour. The look of intrigue on her face wasn't helping either. I was afraid that she would have a heart attack if she got too excited.

"Draco," I tapped on his shoulder.

"Mmm?" he continued to kiss my neck. I felt him nibbling and slightly sucking. I almost forgot why I was trying to get his attention until I saw my neighbour again.

"Draco?" he ignored me. "DRACO!" I pulled on his hair to pull his head back. I wasn't very nice about it.

"Ow! What?!"

"We seem to have drawn an audience." I cocked my head towards the window. He turned around to see my neighbour watching.

"Oh," he turned back to face me, kissing my neck again. "Just let her watch, maybe she'll learn something. She's seems interested enough."

"Draco!"

"Ok, ok!" He turned around and waved at my neighbour, smiling sweetly as he did. I couldn't help but giggle. He turned back to face me, a sexy grin dancing on his lips.

"Wrap your legs around my waist," he instructed as he took my arms and wrapped them around his neck. He pulled me off the counter and carried me out of the kitchen and towards the stairs.

"Are you sure you don't want to talk first?" he asked me, slightly concerned. I stared into his eyes and kissed his swollen lips. "Sex first, talk later. Got it." He kissed me again before he carried up the stairs to my bedroom.

**A/N: **Hello everyone! First of all, I want to thank everyone who reviewed, like I said before and I'll say it again, you are all extraordinarily awesome! And thank you to everyone who has been reading too of course. I want to thank my lovely Lady L. again for her grand opinions and tre awesome ideas! I lobe you (hehe lobe).

Right so, this chapter...What can I say. I'm guessing this means they're back together, yes? Hurray! Can't wait for the next few chapters. Please review!!

-Necia xoxo


	18. Reunions

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story. If I did own everything, I would be filthy rich. That would be nice eh? Plus, I probably would be great pals with Prince William. I had a dream I was his mistress the other night. It was awesome. Ok I'll stop.

**Chapter Eighteen – Reunions**

I listened to Draco's steady heartbeat as he slept. I had my head resting on his bare chest as I absentmindedly played with his chest hair. For the first time in months, Draco and I had finally made love.

There was so much urgency to be together again when we reached my bedroom. It was more difficult than usual to undo his pants. We didn't make love at first, but rather fucked like animals. It was over much too quickly. We waited for a while, holding each other in silence. Later we made love and it was exactly how I remembered it. After a third time, Draco fell asleep. I myself was also tired but there were so many thoughts running through my head that I could not bring myself to fall asleep as he easily did.

I assumed that after our shag session, we were back together and it wasn't just a booty call. I was surprised at myself for reacting the way I did. I would have expected the desperation for sex to have come from Draco. I'm sure he felt the same way I did. I had just beaten him in making the first move.

I wondered if Draco and I should have talked first before jumping right into each other's pants. What would happen if once we talked, we realized that we couldn't be together? The thought of it made my heart ache. I don't think I could handle not being with Draco a second time. The first time was like a glimpse of what my life would become if Draco was permanently out of my life.

I was being overly dramatic I told myself, over thinking things as usual. If I had to leave Draco again, I probably could slightly heal. But I knew there would always being this empty feeling inside of me that nothing or no one could ever completely fill.

My thoughts were interrupted as I felt Draco beginning to stir. I felt cold as he removed his right arm from my waist. He grunted and stretched and returned his arm back to its previous position. I looked up at him to meet his stunning eyes looking back at me.

"Hello there," he said sleepily, taking a stubborn strand of hair covering my face and tucking it behind my ear. He smiled at me which I graciously returned.

"Hi sleepy," I replied. This was my heaven.

"Mmm, you tired me out."

"Yes, I can see that," I teased patting his chest lightly. "I guess I don't know my own strength." I could feel the low rumble of his chuckle in his chest. He kissed my forehead as he closed his eyes and rested his head back, using his left arm for support. I froze.

The Dark Mark was clearly exposed on his forearm, staring at me. The memories started to rush back in. The image of my father cornered up against a wall with Draco pointing his wand directly at his chest was the first to come to mind. I shuddered at the thought as I tried to push the image to the back of my head.

Unintentionally, the tears started to slowly run. They dripped lightly off my face and landed on Draco's chest. I saw in my peripheral Draco opening his eyes to look at me curiously.

"Hermione? What's wrong?" There was concern in his silky voice. I didn't respond but continued to stare at the tattoo that symbolized every reason I should loathe Draco with all my strength. He followed my gaze and comprehension filled his angelic face. He pulled me on top of him and sat us up. I hung my head low as the tears quietly fell onto my leg.

"Do you want me to leave?" Draco whispered. I snapped my head up, eyes wide. That was the last thing I wanted. I shook my head wiping away the tears.

"I just need a moment to collect my thoughts." I watched my hands as I fiddled with my fingers. I couldn't bring myself to look up at him. I opened my mouth slightly to say something, anything that came to mind. Where would I begin?

I opened and closed my mouth again, hoping that more words would come out. When nothing did, I simply sighed and continued to fiddle with my fingers. Draco took my face into his hands and lifted my head so our eyes met.

"Hermione," he said softly. "I know that no matter what I may say or do, it won't bring your father back."

"Draco, I-"

"You know better than anyone else that I didn't want to murder your father and as much I want to change the past, there's nothing neither of us can do about it."

"Yes I know, that's why-"

"I need you Hermione, I can't live without you but I know there is no possible way to apologize to you for my monstrous mistake, but I am deeply and sincerely sorry and wish there was some way I could-"

"Stop," I covered his rambling mouth with my hands. I stared into his pleading eyes, hoping that he understood that I needed to talk as well. "You made a mistake Draco, a terrible and monstrous mistake like you said." He kissed the palms of my hands and I removed them from his mouth, only to hold his face in between them.

"But my mistake was the worst of them all, it's...unforgiveable"

"But don't we all make mistakes? We live and learn and move on. Isn't that the rule of life?" He shrugged and nodded, not completely convinced.

"But how can I move on without you Hermione? My life just isn't the same since I lost you,"

"You haven't lost me Draco," I fiddled with my fingers again. He looked utterly confused.

"I murdered your father in cold blood," he furrowed his eyebrows. "My father killed your mother without thinking twice. How can you possibly still want to be with me?"

"I'm here with you, and you're still in one piece. Doesn't that mean anything?"

"Yes well, I don't blame you. How could you resist me?"

"This is no time for jokes Draco,"

"Sorry," a hint of a smirk played on his delectable lips. I slightly scowled at him.

"What I mean is, I might not be able to completely forgive you, it's not an easy thing to forgive," distress washed over his angelic face. "But I forgive you enough to want to be with you." His face lit up with a mix of confusion and delight.

"Does that mean, we're back together then?" he was hesitant with his words. I nodded. A wide grin spread across his face. He wrapped his arms around me and kissed me wherever his lips would land. "I never expected you to take me back Hermione."

"I didn't either," he had me on my back and was laying on top of me. He lifted his head to meet my eyes.

"What made you decide on taking me back then? I can only think of one reason at the moment," he smiled deviously as I rolled my eyes.

"I love you more than I should hate you. And like I said, we all make mistakes, some bigger than others," I arched an eyebrow at him. "But we all have to learn to forgive and forget."

"Even if that certain something we have to forgive and forget about is murdering loved ones?" now he arched his eyebrow. I stared into his silver diamond eyes, never wanting to look away. I tilted my head upwards and lightly kissed his lips.

"Forgive and forget."



I was in absolute bliss. It had been two weeks since Draco and I had gotten back together. I was completely ecstatic when I told Ginny the good news. I asked her not to mention anything to Harry just yet. I wanted to tell him personally how I felt and why I had decided to forgive Draco. Of course, I doubted he would ever understand and simply just call me mental. Oh well.

I decided not to move back to the manor just yet. I figured that Draco and I rushed into things the first time around and we needed our own space. Plus the time apart made each meeting together that much more special. I hadn't actually been to the manor since we got back together. Draco had been coming over every night after work. He said that we had made love in his bed several times but never in mine. Whatever tickles his fancy I guess?

One night, Draco surprised me by taking me out to dinner. We had never gone out on an official date since Draco would work so late. I was quite giddy when we walked towards my favourite Italian restaurant in muggle London. I felt like the queen of the world as we walked along the street, my hand resting lightly on his arm.

"You're positively radiating tonight Hermione," he said in his silky voice. I smiled brilliantly at him which he graciously returned. "I'm sorry that tonight has to be an early dinner, but I have a business meeting later on and I didn't want to cut into our dinnertime if we went later."

"Don't worry about it," I smiled at him again. "I understand. I'm just glad we're going out at all. We've never done this before!"

"Yes, I figured it was much overdue," he smiled sheepishly as we walked up to the hostess of the restaurant. "Reservations for two, under Granger and Malfoy?" The hostess nodded and smiled sweetly as she took out two menus and asked us to follow her.

Once we were seated, I couldn't keep my eyes off Draco. My head was up in the clouds and couldn't help but have a fiery desire for Draco. I wanted to just pounce on him. At one point during our meal, Draco's facial expression took many forms. He was sipping on his glass of wine when his face went suddenly paler. Confusion, anger, and...fear? I couldn't pinpoint the last expression I saw spread across his beautiful face. I followed his gaze, behind my shoulder to someone sitting at a table some distance away.

Blaise Zabini.

I suppose Draco wouldn't expect to see his friend in muggle London.I looked back at Draco, concerned with his expression. He was gripping his wine glass much too tightly.

"Excuse me a moment Hermione, I'll be right back." He stood quickly, cursing under his breath as he walked over to Blaise. I was utterly confused. Again.

Sigh.

I turned my head to glance at Blaise's table. Draco had his back to me, standing next to Blaise. His hands were behind his back, curled up into tight fists. Blaise looked over at me, examining my face. Draco turned his head to follow Blaise's gaze. Blaise eyed me curiously before looking back at Draco. I turned back around in my seat and waited for Draco to return. When he did, his mood had completely changed.

"Draco? Is everything alright?"

"I need to get you home Hermione, are you finished?" I blinked a few times, trying to comprehend his tone of voice. It seemed urgent and frustrated. I stared at him for a moment and watched as he darted his eyes around the room, shifting uncomfortably in his chair. He finally met my gaze, impatient that I hadn't answered him. He cocked an eyebrow at me and drummed his fingers on the table, waiting for my response. I stared into his diamond eyes, searching for an explanation for the sudden change of mood. I sighed quietly and nodded. He almost knocked his chair over as he stood and grabbed my coat, holding it up impatiently. He reached into his pocket and pulled out a handful of notes and tossed them onto the table.

"Draco?"

He wasn't listening to me at the moment and continued to shift his gaze around the room. He placed a hand on the small of my back and led me out the restaurant. Blaise had already left. Once we were out, he grabbed my hand tightly and we practically ran to our apparation point. Before we reached it, I yanked my hand away from his and stopped walking. He turned to face me, impatient again.

"What's wrong?" he spat, furrowing his eyebrows in distress.

"You tell me. What's wrong with you? Why are you acting so..." I couldn't think of a word to describe his behaviour. "Why did you change so suddenly?" He ran a hand through his hair, pausing to pull on it slightly.

"It's just-"

"Draco look at me," he saw my concern and sighed deeply.

"I'm sorry Hermione, but I really have to go. I'm running a little late you see and-"he met my gaze again and sighed once more. "I'm sorry Hermione. I'll make it up to you. Do you think I could come over after I'm done with this meeting?" I was slightly annoyed. I sighed impatiently, wishing he would tell me for once what was going on. I shrugged my shoulders. He grabbed my hand again and we apparated back to my flat.

Once we were in my living room, he walked around looking in every room. What was he so paranoid about? I sighed again and sat down on the couch, placing my arms across my chest. He came to kneel next to me at some point. He probably found whatever he was searching for.

"I'll be back later, I'm so sorry Hermione," I was staring at my lap as he spoke. He tilted my chin upwards with a cold finger. I stared into his eyes and sighed again.

"Maybe you should just come over tomorrow," I barely whispered. He was slightly taken back. "I'm a bit tired. I had a long day at work and you'll probably be tired too." I really wasn't in the mood to be with him after his strange behaviour. He bit his lip momentarily before responding.

"If that's what you want," I looked away from him and nodded. His face fell slightly before he took my face in his hands and kissed me deeply. "I love you Hermione." He stared into my eyes again. I looked away from him and simply nodded. I saw him bite his lip again as he stood and apparated.

I looked over at the clock. It was only a quarter to six.

I moped around the house for a while, trying to find something to do. I had changed into a pair of jeans and black sweater and tried to read my favourite novel but felt too restless. I missed Draco terribly. I only wished that he would tell me when something was wrong. Why was it so hard for him to trust me?

I kept glancing back at the clock, hoping that somehow Draco would come over anyways although I told him otherwise. At ten thirty, I convinced myself he wouldn't be coming back. So I decided to go to him instead. What a nice surprise it would be I thought, if I crawled into bed with him while he was sleeping. He would wake up in the middle of the night and find me laying next to him. I smiled at the thought and grabbed my coat. I closed my eyes and concentrated on my destination.

When I opened them again, I found myself on the familiar hill overlooking Malfoy Manor. I carefully made my way down the hill. When I reached the gates, I was surprised to find them already slightly open. Odd that Draco would leave them open. When I reached the large dark oak doors, I went to lift the brass knocker but gasped quietly when the door opened on its own. Maybe he didn't bother closing the door properly either?

I peeked inside, a strong sense of forbidding overwhelming me. I shook my head as if to shake off the feeling and stepped inside the manor. I walked through the entrance hall and into the main foyer. It was completely dark and the candles didn't automatically light up when I walked in as they usually did.

"Draco?" I had meant to call out his name, in case he was still awake but it came out as a whisper instead. The sense of forbidding returned. Something inside of me was practically screaming that I should leave. Something wasn't right. I had my wand at the ready as fear suddenly struck in my chest. I called out Draco's name. I jumped slightly and gave a small yelp. I had seen a shadow move. Shadows shouldn't move, should they? I tried to adjust my eyes in the dark.

I screamed as a hand came crashing onto my mouth, muffling it. I protested and found myself struggling against someone's strong arms wrapped around my body. I heard cynical and triumphant laughter from all around me. The candles flickered to life and as my eyes adjusted to the light, I could see a large group of people in dark cloaks surrounding me.

"Take her wand." Someone yanked my wand out of my hand.

Well, well, well," I recognized the voice even before Blaise Zabini stepped into the light. "Isn't this interesting?" he chuckled as he made his way over to me.

"What a shame. I would have expected capturing you to have been more of a challenge. Others were having such a hard time getting to you." he continued as he stroked my hair. I attempted to free myself of whoever held me in their grasp but it was hopeless. What the hell was he talking about? "Let her speak."

The hand was removed from my mouth and I spat at Blaise's face. I heard gasps and disapproving chatter. I wondered how many of them were in the room. A low growl rumbled in his chest as he slapped me hard across the face and punched me in my ribs, knocking the air out of my lungs. I had heard a cracking sound.

"You shouldn't have done that love," his voice was calm but threatening. "Now I'm going to have to bring you to my master in a less than presentable manner." I widened my eyes in horror, fearing the meaning of his words.

I was thrown harshly to the ground. Someone's foot repeatedly made contact with my ribs and stomach while another kicked at my legs as I cried out in pain. The last image I remembered before blacking out was the bottom of someone's shoe coming at my face.

**A/N: **Holy crap! What the hell just happened?! Let me know what you think.

Anyways, I am terribly sorry for not updating sooner but I've been quite busy. Plus, I was reading _Breaking Dawn_ hehe sorry! I'm sure you twilighters out there will understand. Back to the story...thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing! You guys are oh-so-awesome! I'll update soon.

-Necia xoxo


	19. Revelations

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story. All the characters and everything Harry Potter related belong to J.K. Rowling and her minions. Wish I had minions...

**Chapter Nineteen – Revelations**

"I thought that he had it under control."

"Zabini just wants to be her favourite."

"He shouldn't have intervened."

"But Zabini actually brought her here, why couldn't he have done the same before?"

"Because he said he had it under control."

"I wish they would hurry up already, I'm starving."

The murmur of voices around me woke me. I couldn't make sense of what they were talking about or how many people were talking at once. I didn't recognize any of the voices. I tried to force my eyes open. It was difficult. My left eye wouldn't cooperate properly. When I finally managed to open my eyes painful as it was, I found myself staring at my lap. I tried to move my arms and found that I couldn't. I felt the roughness of rope tied around my wrists and then realized my legs were also tied up.

I looked up and found myself staring at the backs of several people, all wearing black cloaks. I didn't recognize where I was. The room was dimly lit making it difficult to see clearly. I tried to shift my weight and groaned in pain. Some of my ribs were definitely broken. It was then that I remembered what had happened before I fell asleep, or rather, passed out.

The persons in black cloaks heard me groan and spun around to face me. One of them knelt to be at face level with me. She pulled back on my hair and smiled.

"She's awake."

I heard the creaking of a door opening and the slight whooshing sound of someone's cloak flutter behind them as they walked away.

"Where am I?" My voice cracked as I forced the words out of my mouth. There was quiet laughter.

"Hell," someone replied, more laughter.

"Shut it," the woman growled. She reminded me of a hag with her pointy nose and small beady eyes.

I groaned in pain as I shifted my legs slightly. She glared at me and slapped me across the face. Why did people always seem the need to slap me? It was utterly annoying.

"What a shock for the boy-who-won't-die this will be, don't you think?" the same woman asked me. "Maybe that way he'll learn not to play with the big boys and keep his big nose out of our business."

"You should talk," I managed to say. Someone laughed in the background and she scowled at me, slapping at me once more before standing up and stalking off. I turned my neck side to side and was satisfied that I didn't cringe in pain. I turned my head to the left and found myself staring at another hostage.

I had convinced myself by now that I had been taken hostage. The hag woman's words had confirmed it. The other hostage stared back at me. She had a painful expression spread across her face. Her left eye was purple and looked like it had hurt. Her curly brown hair was in a complete mess and like me, she was tied up. I shifted my legs again and she did the same. I found it curious that her black sweater looked exactly like mine...

I gasped quietly when I realized I had been staring into a mirror. For being punched and kicked, I didn't look half as bad with the exception of the broken ribs and black eye. I thought Blaise would have done worse, but I was grateful he hadn't killed me at least.

The room went silent for a while, with my kidnappers whispering amongst themselves quietly so I couldn't hear them. I looked around and could now see there were five men and the hag woman. I was surprised that I was taking the situation so calmly. Perhaps I was expecting something or someone.

Draco.

I held my breath as the realization hit me. Where was Draco? Blaise and his companions had been in the manor, had they taken Draco as well? Was that why Draco's behaviour had been so strange? Were the people in this very room actually Death Eaters? Had Bellatrix finally decided to strike? The hag woman's words struck me and knocked the air out of my lungs.

I needed to get out of here and find Draco.

I struggled against the ropes holding me back, biting my lip to stop myself from groaning again in pain. I could feel the ropes cutting into my skin. I remembered then that my wand was taken from me. What would I do now? I desperately searched the room, hoping that something would give me a clue. I whimpered slightly when I saw it was hopeless.

My last words to Draco made me cringe. I was going to die and never would I be able to say to Draco that I loved him too. As if on cue, the salty tears started to roll down my cheeks. The door to the room creaked open and someone walked in.

"Take her," a hoarse voice said. I panicked when two people approached me and lifted me off the ground. The seven of them pulled on their hoods and formed into two lines. Whoever had come into the room led the way out of the room. I darted my eyes in all directions, completely terrified of where they could be taking me or what they were going to do me.

Since my legs were tied up, they dragged me down a long corridor, dimly lit by torches attached to the stone walls. I felt as if I was a prisoner being taken to their execution in the Tower of London. I struggled against the grasp of my kidnappers, but they only tightened their grip. I could have screamed, but who would hear me? Would anyone save me? I could hear a mumble of voices as we approached a pair of large wooden doors. We stopped at this point and waited.

What were we waiting for? This sense of not knowing what was going to happen to me was driving me mad. I hoped that everything was just a terrible dream and that I would wake up soon. Because I knew once I woke up, I would find myself in Draco's arms and everything would be alright. He would comfort me and convince me I was just having a bad dream. But such hope was quickly fading the doors creaked open. My procession began to move again and I was dragged into what I assumed was a throne room.

I searched the room frantically. Was this where I was to die? The room was fairly large and could easily fit at least five hundred people. Like the corridors, there were torches attached to the stone walls and there were wrought iron candle stands around the room. A long dark red carpet stretched from the entrance up to a set of stairs. I heard several gasps and whispers as I was taken down the aisle towards the stairs.

I looked around and saw a large group of cloaked people, whispering behind their hands and pointing their fingers at me. The two lines ahead of me spilt up while the men who had me in their grasp continued to the bottom of the stairs. They came to a halt and threw me harshly down against the cold rough stone floor. I cried out in pain and feared what I would see when I looked up. At the top of the stairs was a large black throne chair and in it sat Bellatrix Lestrange. I stared at the skull-like face as she sat upright when her heavily lidded eyes fell upon me. A dark figure to the right of Bellatrix shifted. I would have not noticed there was someone standing in the shadows if they hadn't moved. I assumed it was her lover or her best Death Eater.

"Silence!" she shrieked and the room instantly went dead. "Blaise, explain yourself." I had not noticed that my kidnappers had thrown me next to Blaise. He was standing with his hands casually behind his back, a smug expression spread across his face.

"Well mistress," he began turning pace around me. "I felt that the mission to capture the Granger trash had been much too prolonged. You said so yourself that we have waited too long to act against Potter." There was some chatter from everyone else in the room, drowning out Blaise's voice.

"Enough!" Bellatrix shrieked again, silencing the room. "Continue Blaise." She brought the tips of her fingertips together. Blaise bowed his head and continued to speak.

"Like so many others in this room, I felt that _some _people were too incompetent to succeed with this mission. I wanted to prove that capturing Granger wasn't as difficult as others were making it seem. And of course, I wanted more information on...my earlier suspicions I mentioned to you before. "

"And were you correct? On your suspicions that is."

"I'm almost certain Mistress. We would just need to retrieve the information in a less friendly manner."

"I see," Bellatrix said. "Suspicions set aside, you mean to tell me that you defied my orders then?"

"Not quite mistress, I simply-"

"You did not follow my orders Blaise. Are you implying that I have poor judgement and should have ordered YOU to capture her?"

"No I-"

"Do NOT interrupt me Blaise," she shrieked once more. "You were not assigned for this mission and should not have intervened."

"But I brought her to you!"

"I did not ask you to. You defied me and for that you shall be punished." She waved her hand and two Death Eaters grabbed Blaise's arms and held them behind his back.

"No! Let go of me! Mistress, please!" Blaise pleaded and I saw the fear in his eyes. Bellatrix ignored him and stood and slowly made her way down the stairs, as if she were a queen. She took out her wand and stood inches away from me. She directed her wand at Blaise and the fear was completely evident on his face.

"Avada Kedvra," she mumbled. There was a shot of blinding green light and a low thump sound as Blaise's lifeless corpse fell to the ground. He did not even get a chance to scream. A stunned silence filled the room. "Let that be a lesson to the lot of you." She waved her hand again and Blaise's body was dragged out of the room. There was only one thing that went through my head.

Was that Draco's fate? Was it mine?

"On her feet," she commanded as she turned towards me. The Death Eaters that had brought me to the throne room lifted me off the ground once more. I swallowed my fear as I came face to face with Bellatrix. She ran the tip of her wand along the outline of my jaw and stared at me curiously. "I wonder," she whispered.

"Crucio," she mumbled. I shrieked in pain and curled my hands into fists as I felt a million daggers stab me on every inch of my body. An electric current ran through my body, shocking me with such force that it was impossible not to scream. My body twisted into impossible positions making the pain of my broken ribs ten times worse. She cackled at my pain and continued to torture me, increasing the intensity of my pain every time she cast the spell.

I didn't know how much time had passed but she eventually stopped. I groaned loudly and let my head drop. I could hear Bellatrix's heavy breathing. I lifted my head to look up at her. She was biting her lip and squinted her eyes. She nodded her head and I fell to the ground once more. Someone kicked my broken ribs. Another kicked my legs. My kidneys. My back. My chest. I tasted blood and cried out in pain.

"ENOUGH!" someone yelled. The kicking stopped. My breathing had become heavy and every inch of my body was in excruciating pain. I was lifted off the ground again but I had no energy to hold myself up. My head drooped and I saw drops of blood falling to the ground. Falling from my mouth most likely.

"This is highly unnecessary Bella."

My heart stopped. The one voice I would recognize anywhere and anytime. I must have been having a hallucination. Hearing voices in my head. With whatever little energy I had left I lifted my head. Bellatrix had returned to her chair and was watching me. Someone stepped out from the shadows on her right. I inhaled sharply and my legs swayed underneath me as Draco came into view.

I was breaking into a million pieces. I didn't know what to think. I didn't know how I should have felt. I couldn't put a name to the squeezing pressure I felt in my chest. This was not happening. What I was seeing wasn't real.

It couldn't be.

I stared at him hoping that he was simply a delusion. That he would disappear.

"Why not Draco?" Bellatrix asked, looking up at him curiously her fingertips together once more. He was gripping her chair tightly and could easily have broken off a piece of it. He stared at me but I couldn't pinpoint his expression. It was completely blank.

"We want Potter to find her alive don't us?" there was no silk in his voice. "What good is she to us if she's dead?" His words struck me harder than anything that had hit me earlier. Nothing had hurt more. I let my head drop again and cried out in agony.

My world was crashing down on me and I couldn't sustain the weight of it anymore.

"Draco is right," Bellatrix announced. "We can't kill her yet but her presence sickens me, filthy mudblood. Take her away to the dungeons."

I was dragged out of the room as I cried out once more.

**A/N: **Don't hate me! I'm sorry! Trust me, I'm just as devastated. See what lack of communication does to a relationship? Tsk tsk. Please review!

Much thanks to all my lovely and loyal readers and reviewers, you guys are truly the bestest!

-Necia xoxo


	20. Déjà Vu

**Disclaimer: **I own nothing but the story so, please don't sue me. I am but a humble mortal.

**Chapter Twenty – Déjà Vu**

"_You must not eat fruit from the tree that is in the middle of the garden, and you must not touch it, or you will die."_

- Genesis 3:2

Why is it, that when something is said to be forbidden it makes it that much more tempting to do it anyways? The curiosity of why something is forbidden is enough to drive even the sanest person mad. When something is classified as "forbidden" it's like that big red button that says "do not press" in big capital letters. Why _not_ press it? What happens when you do?

Naturally, there will always be consequences. The red button is pressed and the whole city explodes. But the person that you end up hurting the most is yourself. You smack yourself a million times over, feeling like the biggest git in the world. How could you be so unbelievably irrational and stupid to allow yourself to do such a thing? They don't say it's forbidden just for the hell of it.

In my case, I blindly fell for Draco Malfoy. I knew that Draco was forbidden from the moment I knew who he was. He was my big red button. He was the forbidden fruit that would truly be the death of me. I had taken a bite and despite the warnings, the fact that he murdered my father, I found myself in a state of déjà vu.

I stared at the dark ceiling, crumpled on the too familiar cold ground waiting for darkness to engulf me completely. I had no way of telling what time of day it was or to even distinguish night from day. There was no window in my tiny dungeon cell, only the large cell door and a single torch that flickered endlessly.

I gasped for air as I had cried for what seemed hours. No one continued to torture me physically, but I spent my time torturing myself, asking myself the same question over and over again.

_Why? _

I could feel the blood dripping from my mouth and nose, the thousand daggers stabbing away all over my body. I hadn't moved since they put me in the cell even though the ropes around my wrists and legs were cut off. I knew that if I moved at all, I would scream out in agony. I couldn't say that I did not exactly know this was going to happen. Harry had tried to warn me several times.

Images and words came to me every now and then. There were memories that at the time of their occurrence should have triggered a warning for me. Had I actually been that blind to not notice them before?

No, I had noticed them I convinced myself. I just refused to analyze the situation and figure out the mess I had gotten myself into. Everything came rushing back at me.

The "family business".

The late night chats and leaving in the middle of the night.

Blaise's reaction to me when he first saw me in the manor.

The way Blaise called Draco "Master". Of course! He's Bellatrix's right hand man. They follow his orders as blindly as they follow hers.

What I couldn't figure out was why Draco had waited so long to bring me to Bellatrix, and never actually ended up doing it himself. What was he waiting for? Why waste so much time pretending to care about me when he never actually did?

How I wished I would have listened to Harry.

"_He can't be trusted."_

But if Harry knew, why did he not do something about it before?

"_She's not going to die. I wouldn't let anything bad happen to her."_

I felt as if I had a jack hammer to my head. I was so confused. There were so many unanswered questions, so many of them too impossible to have an explanation. My vision was going blurry and everything around me was slowly starting to fade. Sparks started to flash before my eyes, it was hard to breathe, and I was ready to pass out.

I was dying of a broken heart. Of that I was certain.

I had loved Draco truly and passionately. He was the very core of my existence. The moment he had stepped out of the darkness my existence shattered into a million pieces. I was betrayed and fooled into believing the promises he didn't intend to keep into my ear. I believed every word he said to me, every touch, and every kiss and in the end none of that even matters. In the end, I found myself alone, betrayed, and dying. All because of him. I closed my eyes and waited for the angel from my dreams to take me away.

Somewhere in the background I could hear the cell door open, filling my prison with an awful creaking racket. So I wasn't dead yet. Pity.

I couldn't even lift a single finger without screaming bloody murder so there was no chance I was going to lift myself up to see who was my "visitor"was. Perhaps it was someone who had been sent to end the misery that I found myself in, both physically and emotionally.

"Hermione?"

No sorry wrong cell. Idiot.

Even though I was practically dead, I could still recognize his voice. My "angel" had come to find me. Perhaps he came to finish of what he had started out to do. The sound of his voice echoed and bounced off the cell walls, silky and soft as I remembered it. I could hear his footsteps approaching me somewhere in the distance.

All I wanted to do at that point was jump up and attack him, yell at him, scream at him for having betrayed and lied to me. But I couldn't. All I could do was lay there as a barely living corpse, anger pumping vigorously through my veins.

I shuddered as I felt his cold finger along my cheekbone, cupping my face when his finger reached my jaw. Whatever I would usually feel when he would caress me so was dead. All that I felt with the contact of his skin was disgust.

"Hermione my love," he whispered. "How could I have let this happen to you?"

The anger bubbled beneath my skin. What was he playing at? Did he have some sort of split personality disorder?

"I know you can hear me Hermione. There are no words that I could possibly say-"

"I-"my breathing was raspy. It was difficult to bring myself to speak. My lips were cracked and it hurt to bring myself to say the one word. But I had to say what I had to say to get it out of my system. Even if it killed me.

"Shh, don't speak Hermione. It must be painful. You have no idea how much it's killing me-"

"I-I hate-"I squeezed my eyes together and slowly opened them. The moment I did, I found myself staring into a pair of silver, pale blue diamond eyes. "-you". I breathed heavily, attempting to catch my breath. He stared at me for what seemed an eternity.

"Hermione-"

"I hay-I hate-"tears pooled up in the diamond eyes I once fell in love with. "I hate you."

It was silent expect for my raspy breathing. He continued to stare into my eyes, piercing what felt like my very soul. He shook his head several times.

"No, no, no! This can't be happening!" the tears in his eyes started to roll down his face.

"I mps frhth mytrisntr fgc. I mps frhth mytrisntr fgc!" he cried out, his eyes pleading but I couldn't make out what he was trying to say.

My vision was growing darker by the second, as if an invisible hand was slowly covering my eyes. The last thing I saw before all was black was his piercing silver water-filled eyes. It was an image that would be burned into my memories for as long as I lived. A single tear dropped from his face and onto my lips. It was salty and bitter. Bitter as the forbidden fruit should be.

**A/N:** Oh it's so depressing! Sigh. Anyways, thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing, I love you all!

_Random fact:_ This was the first chapter I had actually written for this story and it was originally going to be the prologue. When I had written it, I was still trying to figure out the main plot of the story so I decided against posting it as the prologue. I actually decided against the prologue idea completely and simply wrote "The Story of My Life" as the intro chapter. For the longest time I had this chapter named as "Ch. Something" until it was ready to be posted. I polished it up, took out some things, added new things, and voila! I'll stop dithering now so you can review :P

-Necia xoxo


	21. Secrets No More

**Disclaimer: **Sigh. I own nothing but the story. But I'm sure you already knew that, considering this is the 21st time I've said it.

**Chapter Twenty-One – Secrets No More**

Beep. Beep. Beep.

The afterlife was definitely not what I had expected it to be.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

It was dark and I felt extremely stiff. I assumed it was because I was always lying down. What was up with that? I always thought the afterlife would be slightly more joyful, bright, and not to mention a lot less lonesome.

Beep. Beep. Beep.

That was another thing. Not once did anyone mention that infernal beeping noise. Wasn't death supposed to be quieter? Although, that being said I could hear voices from my past life every now and then. I recognized Harry and Ginny's voices, for I heard them more frequently. Had I come back from the dead to haunt them?

I lifted a finger. It felt as if I had not performed the simple gesture in ages. My eyes slowly fluttered open and a bright light disturbed my blurry vision. I blinked slowly several times until my vision came into focus. The first thing I saw was a pair of emerald eyes.

"You're awake," Harry said, breathing out in relief. I grunted as I tried to move my head.

"Where-"I only managed to whisper the one word. My tongue felt like rubber as if it had been out of use for quite some time.

"Shh, don't speak. You're at St. Mungo's Hermione. You've been in a coma for almost a month," Ah. So I wasn't dead, just in a hospital bed. "I'll be right back. The Healer wanted to see you the moment you woke up." I heard the scraping of Harry's chair as he stood and walked away.

Now that my vision was more or less back to normal, I observed my surroundings. How in bloody hell did I end up here? It appeared that I was in a private room. There were flowers and gifts everywhere on every available space. Several chairs were placed around my bed and there was even an extra bed laid out in the far corner. In it was Ginny, fast asleep. The poor thing, I wondered how long it had been since she had slept in her own bed. Harry returned with an attractive blond man in a white lab coat. The Healer I assumed.

"Ah Miss Granger, it's so good to see you awake," the Healer smiled widely at me. "Let's just take a look at you." He walked over to me and checked my pulse, temperature, motor movements, etc as his magic quill jotted down notes.

"Everything is looking good, you've had a quick recovery," he said when he was done. "You should be able to go home in a couple of days." He smiled again and I simply nodded. I felt exhausted. Harry shook the Healer's hand and chatted with him momentarily at the door. Once he had left, Harry came to sit down next to me. There was something troubling me. I cleared my throat so that I could attempt to speak properly.

"Harry," my voice sounded off. "How did I-"He simply shook his head.

"I don't think this is the appropriate time Hermione, you should rest." That's ridiculous. I had been sleeping for almost a month. As much I hated to admit, he was right. I did feel worn out and I had only been awake for less than ten minutes. He stroked my hand as I closed my eyes once more.



As the Healer had said, I was able to go home a couple of days later. Harry still wouldn't answer my questions saying that he would try to explain at home. Obviously, I was getting quite annoyed. I still wanted to know what happened, how I was in a dungeon cell one second and how I ended up in a hospital bed the next. Perhaps I had never been in the dungeon at all. Maybe I was just having a nightmare and fell out of my bed, hit my head, and drifted into unconsciousness. But of course, I knew that had not happened and the shattered pieces of my heart ached with grief.

I felt better than I ever had once I got home, physically anyhow. Any broken bones were mended and I didn't have a single bruise anywhere on my body. Ginny was positively thrilled that I was completely recovered. Apparently I was in pretty bad shape when they took me to the hospital. She did not accompany Harry and me to my flat. I assumed Harry wanted to talk to me alone.

I was anxious to get home and finally have someone explain to me what was going on. Once there, I waited for Harry to initiate the conversation. I was tired of pestering him for answers so I figured he would give them to me on his own. As usual, the anticipation was driving m e insane and so I spoke even before he was able to sit down.

"Harry, I think I deserve to know what's going on,"

"Yes Hermione," he sighed. "I know. But it's difficult, you see?"

"No actually, I don't see. I'm tired of being left out in the dark. I want explanations and I want them _now_." I crossed my arms and made myself comfortable as I sat down on my sofa. I looked at him and waited. Harry sighed again and rubbed his neck. If he was stressed, I wondered what that made me. He opened his hands and shook them in the air as he searched for words. He finally met my eyes and spoke.

"Draco-"

"Stop," I raised my hand. The mere mention of his name made me clutch my aching chest. "I don't want to hear a word about that-that-_him_."

"But Hermione, I have to explain. Well, at least try to."

"You obviously know that I ended up in the hospital because of him don't you? You knew he was a Death Eater from the start Harry, why didn't we act before?" The tears gathered up but I forced them back. I had cried enough tears for Draco Malfoy.

"Because Hermione, he's not who you think he is," Harry grunted in frustration.

"Yes you've said that before," I fiddled with my fingers, my voice barely a whisper. "I'm sorry I didn't listen to you before Harry I was just so blind."

"No Hermione, this is mostly _my_ fault," I looked up at him, utterly confused.

"How is it your fault? Did you fall in love with the enemy too?"

"He's not our enemy Hermione,"

"He could have killed me if he had the chance. He had several opportunities. I don't know why he didn't take them,"

"Hermione-"

"I mean, why did he waste so much time trying to convince me he loved me only so that he would try to kill me in the end?"

"Hermione, if you would just-"

"I just don't understand. How could you knowing he was a Death Eater-"

"Hermione, PLEASE just listen for a moment will you?" Harry raised his voice and stared at me in annoyance. I pursed my lips together and stared back at him. "Draco was the one who took you to the hospital and contacted Ginny and me." I blinked in amazement.

"Why would he do that?"

"Because the man adores you,"

"Honestly Harry, do you hear yourself talk?" I laughed out loud. "Don't try to convince me that Malfoy is the good guy in this story."

"But-"

"The man wanted me dead. Does that not mean anything to you?"

"He never wanted you dead Hermione,"

"I saw him with my own eyes Harry! I heard the words come out of his mouth! Why are you suddenly defending him?" I stood up, frustrated and unbelieving of what Harry was trying to convince me of. "You said so yourself that he couldn't be trusted."

"I only said that because I knew a relationship between the two of you would put you in danger,"

"Well guess what? It did. YOU let me learn the hard way."

"Only because YOU refused to listen to any reason!" Harry's voice level was losing control. "I didn't want any of this to happen but Draco assured me he had everything under control. That you would be safe and-"

"What a load of tripe! So he took me to the hospital, but to me that just means he needs to set his priorities straight. Something is obviously wrong with him and frankly, I'm starting to think there's something wrong with you too!" I was starting to lose my temper.

"Draco risked his life to save you Hermione,"

"I don't know why. It's probably just another one of his ploys. Don't you believe me when I say that I saw him at Bellatrix's right hand? What else could that possibly mean to you?" I turned away from Harry and started to stalk off. He yelled out in frustration.

"Draco mps frhth mytrisntr fgc!" I froze. The room had gone completely silent as I began to put Harry's words together.

"What did you say?" I stared at the wall. Was it too much of a coincidence that Harry's nonsense sounded too much like Draco's?

"Draco mps frhth mytrisntr fgc," he repeated as I slowly turned around to face Harry once more. He looked at me as if what he was saying was the most obvious thing in the world. Was it truly that obvious? I made my way over to where he stood and stared into his eyes, searching for an answer.

"_Every time I try to it just sounds like gibberish."_

Draco's words and their meaning hit me like a crashing wave.

"_Do you see why I can't tell you what's going on? It's impossible for me to tell you no matter how hard I try!"_

How could I have not seen it before?

"Harry," I could barely hear myself. "Who is the Secret Keeper?"He smiled at me.

"I always knew you were a clever witch." He grabbed my hand and we apparated from my living room.



Harry had apparated us to the Ministry of Magic. We walked quickly to the elevators and we flew several stories up. He practically dragged me along a wide corridor to a large golden door. There was a plaque and on it was inscribed, MINISTER OF MAGIC. He knocked once and opened the door, not waiting for a reply. I wondered why Harry was in such a hurry. At the same time, I was frightened to ask. Cornelius Fudge sat behind his grand desk, absolutely appalled at our unwelcomed entry.

"Harry, I demand an explanation! What sort of behaviour-"

"Sir, there is something urgent and important we need to discuss," Harry interrupted. Fudge eyed me curiously before looking back at Harry. "Hermione needs to know."

"Know what? I have no idea what you are talking about Potter," Fudge straightened up in his chair and smoothed out his robes.

"With all due respect sir, you know _exactly _what I'm talking about. Draco and I told you how Hermione was involved in all of this and frankly, it has gone too far. We should have told her from the beginning, but I don't know why you insisted that-"

"Potter, that is quite enough!" Fudge's eyes were practically popping out of his sockets.

"SHE WAS ALMOST KILLED!" I couldn't believe that Harry was actually yelling at the Minister of Magic. Sure, he defeated Voldemort but that didn't mean Fudge couldn't fire him. "Because of your childish insistence that only we could know, we almost lost one of the greatest witches of our time! Think of the enormous assistance Hermione would have been to us if she had known!" I placed my hand lightly on Harry's shoulder. He really needed to calm down. His face was beet red and I swear I could see the steam coming out of his ears.

"I don't see why she needs to know," Fudge had a silly expression on his face, as if he was trying to make himself appear more grandeur. I just wanted to smack it right off his face.

"Because she practically already knows," Harry looked at me for a second before returning his gaze to Fudge. "And because Draco is going to die if she doesn't. They'll find out what he did and without a doubt, they will kill him." It was like the air was knocked out of my lungs.

"Enough," I said. "Tell me for once, what the hell is going on." Fudge looked at Harry and me before speaking.

"Well, we lose some and gain some. I suppose if Draco is to die, he didn't do his job right. I'm sure you Hermione, will do a more satisfactory job." The anger bubbled beneath me as I curled my hands into tight fists.

"Just tell me."

"Yes, yes fine. Draco is a spy for the Ministry of Magic."

My legs gave out and I collapsed to the ground. Everything started to fall into place and I felt much too overwhelmed. I buried my face into my hands and started sobbing uncontrollably. I didn't even know why I was crying. I suppose the comprehension of Draco's words and actions were finally making sense.

I heard Harry and Fudge talking, but I couldn't make out what they were saying. It didn't matter to me at the moment. I heard footsteps across the room and the opening and closing of a door. A pair of strong arms wrapped themselves around me. Harry sighed before he spoke.

"You know that after the war, Draco disappeared for some time. He wandered around for a while since he was banished from the manor. Later on, he came to find me. Bellatrix had placed a curse on Narcissa as vengeance for Draco's betrayal to Voldemort and everything the Malfoy family stood for,"

"She died from that then?" I had somewhat got my sobbing under control.

"Yes, it was a long and painful death," I nodded into Harry's chest. I remembered how awful Narcissa had looked when I saw her.

"Naturally, Draco wanted to find a way to save his mother. I brought him to the Ministry and we explained Draco's situation to Fudge. We agreed on the idea that Draco would return to the Death Eaters as a spy, but that only the three of us would know. This mission wasn't supposed to be on file and Fudge felt it was necessary that if less people knew the better. Draco would make the Death Eaters think that he repented for his error in turning against Voldemort and wished to help them kill me. We figured that if they fell for it, we would be able to get all the inside information on the Death Eaters and also, Bellatrix would lift the curse off Narcissa."

"But only half of the plan worked."

"Unfortunately, yes. Bellatrix isn't very forgiving, but did welcome Draco with open arms. We could never make sense of that. You remember the time you found Draco on the street dressed as a hobo?" I nodded. "At that time, Draco had just found out information on the Death Eaters latest plot. They would find you, Ginny, or Ron and take either of you as a hostage. Once I fell for the bait, they would try to kill me. Draco was disguised because he was waiting for me to meet up with him so he could give me all the details."

No wonder Harry was so hospitable when he saw Draco in my house.

"That's why you would only meet up in muggle London," I stated rather than asked. I already knew the answer, I had seen them.

"Yes, he wouldn't always disguise himself. He only did it because I asked him. But muggle London was the least likely place to run into Death Eaters at the moment or so we thought. They were on the run and wouldn't come out of hiding so easily. Anyways, we learnt that the Death Eaters main target became you. Draco asked for the job to locate you. He knew that if he was assigned to find you, the other Death Eaters wouldn't dare intervene in his work. He had become Bellatrix's favourite and basically second in command. I gave Draco fake documents that your location was unknown and gave the excuse that he was searching for you worldwide. They seemed to believe it, unsuccessful as he was." Harry shrugged.

"The idea of him staying with you seemed fine. At least you were protected for the time being. He could easily pull off being out of the country in the Death Eaters eyes while in fact, he was closer to you than they could ever imagine. When his mother died, he was angry at Bellatrix for not lifting the curse. He figured that Bellatrix was beginning to question Draco's loyalties and might send someone else to find you. He knew that the safest place for you was with him, where none of the Death Eaters would expect to look."

"When you told me that you had fallen in love with Draco, it was as if warning alerts were going ballistic. Although Draco's espionage for the Ministry was not on file, the Death Eaters could find alternate ways to incriminate him." I swallowed hard.

"If they were to find out about my relationship with Draco..."

"They would kill you both. But Draco seemed to have it under control. That's what he kept telling everyone anyways. He told me he had the relationship with you under control. He told the Death Eaters he had his mission under control and was sure he would find you soon. But time passed and the Death Eaters weren't getting any results from Draco and some were getting slightly impatient."

"Blaise," I scowled at the name.

"Yes, he became highly suspicious of Draco and his suspicions were confirmed that night he encountered you at the manor. He did not inform Bellatrix that you were at the manor because Draco told him he had you under the Imperius curse. Blaise was not completely convinced and told Bellatrix he was suspicious of Draco's loyalties. I warned Fudge that we needed more help with this task but Fudge insisted that only the three of us should know. He was paranoid I suppose. Like I said, this task wasn't supposed to be on file."

"Blaise would ask Draco about you in private and didn't believe Draco when he told him you "escaped", meaning the time you were apart. So then Blaise followed Draco one day that he was supposed to be "looking" for you. That was the night he saw you together at the restaurant. Draco told him not to intervene with his work and Blaise left. He had his own plans and went to the manor and waited. Draco took you home and put up a strong shield around your house as he always did and left for the Death Eaters hidden location. You arrived at the manor and well...you know what happened next." I shuddered at the memory. It was a complete nightmare.

Draco had never betrayed me or even lied to me. He just could never literally tell me what was going on. I was going to need a lot of therapy when this was over.

"You said Draco took me to the hospital,"

"Yes,"

"How did he manage that?"

"Well, they didn't always check up on your cell. Draco said you looked pretty much dead so one really bothered. He snuck you out in the middle of the night and contacted me. I arrived at St. Mungo's and he explained everything. And-"he paused. I looked up at him and saw worry written all over his face.

"And...?"

"I haven't heard from him since." If my experience a month ago had been a nightmare, this was absolute hell.

"Why haven't you gone looking for him?" I shook free of Harry's embrace to look at him. Draco has risked everything they had worked for and his own life just to save me and there had been no word from him since. "What are you waiting for?!"

The realization that Draco's life was in more danger than it ever had been, and all because of me, was too unbearable. Then Fudge's words echoed the answer to my questions.

"_We lose some and gain some."_

"He's going to let Draco _die_?!"

"I don't know what to say," Harry replied sheepishly.

"YOU'RE HARRY FUCKING POTTER!" I stood up and paced manically. "Do you mean to tell me that you're going to start following rules _now_?"He stared at me in complete shock.

"I know we have to do something but-"

"But nothing! What did Fudge expect? That the two of you would bring down every Death Eater single handed? You're the bloody Head of the Auror department Harry, call the damn Auror's and do something!" I glared at him. "Because if you don't, I will."

"Alright, alright. Don't bite my head off." He stood and grabbed a piece of enchanted parchment from Fudge's desk. The scratching of his quill was driving me insane, couldn't he write faster? I ran my fingers through my hair and pulled hard on it, as if to relieve the enormous headache I had.

I wondered if I had pulled my hair too hard and had actually pulled out a good chunk. It felt shorter than I had remembered. Perhaps they had to cut my hair at the hospital?

"Harry?"

"I'm going as fast as I can," he had folded the parchment into an airplane. It was hovering in mid-air, waiting to be told its destination.

"Harry, did someone have to cut my hair back at the hospital?" he sent the parchment airplane away and looked at me curiously.

"No, why?" My eyes widened in horror. Could Draco have possibly...

"What's the most vital ingredient in polyjuice potion Harry?" Harry read my expression and groaned.

"Stupid ferret!"

**A/N: **Holy crap! Well, at least Hermione got what she wanted right? She wanted explanations but no one ever said it would be pleasant. Thanks to everyone who has been reading and reviewing! You guys are fabulous!

-Necia xoxo

**Secret Keeper **– the witch or wizard who was the one person who knew about the magical concealment of a secret with the Fidelius Charm; the secret was impossible to reveal unless the Secret-Keeper chose to divulge it; Peter Pettigrew was the Secret Keeper for the Potters; Dumbledore was the Secret Keeper for the headquarters of the Order of the Phoenix (PA10, 19; OP6) (PA10, 19; OP6; HBP2)

**Polyjuice Potion**

_Ingredients: Fluxweed, Horn of Bicorn (powdered), Knotgrass, Lacewing flies, Leeches, Skin of Boomslang (shredded), plus a bit of whoever you want to assume the appearance of _

This potion allows the drinker to assume the appearance of another person. The effect lasts for exactly one hour after the potion has been drunk, but as Bartemius Crouch Jnr showed when impersonating Alastor Moody, repeat doses can be taken indefinitely. This does, of course, require a large supply of Polyjuice Potion COS9,10, 12; GOF35.

- The Harry Potter Encyclopedia


End file.
